Video Bible Lesson - Do Not Neglect Your Spiritual Gift by Dr. Charles Stanley

1/2 Hour of God’s Power with Scott Ralls

5/19/2020

Do Not Neglect Your Spiritual Gift

Dr. Charles Stanley

1 Timothy 4:12-16
Every Christian is given at least one spiritual gift with which to serve the Lord and build up the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:7). But many believers neglect this special empowerment of the Spirit. Although Timothy had some good reasons to forsake his calling from God, Paul advised him to "take pains with these things" and "be absorbed in them" (v. 15). As you look at Timothy, ask yourself if either of the following situations are hindering you from fully serving the Lord.
Age: No matter how old we are, the Lord wants us to use our spiritual gifts. Because Timothy was young, he could easily have been intimidated by those with more experience. However, youth isn't our only excuse. Some believers think they're too old to serve the Lord. Even though our areas of ministry may change over the years, we're never called into spiritual retirement.
Inadequacy: Have you ever avoided a service opportunity simply because you felt totally unqualified? That's probably how Timothy felt about leading the church at Ephesus. Our spiritual gifts rarely come to us fully developed. God often requires that we step out in faith and trust Him to work in and through us. Over time, as we obey and serve Him in our areas of giftedness, He increases the effectiveness of our ministry.
Is anything keeping you from using your spiritual gifts? Though given to us, these abilities aren't for us; they're for the church. To neglect them would not only deprive fellow believers but also rob ourselves: there is joy and blessing in serving others and doing the work God has designated for us.

#Jesus, #Christian, #Bible, #Salvation, #Heaven, #God, #HolySpirit

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Every Right Prayer

Streams in the Desert

And it came to pass, before he had done speaking...and he said, Blessed be Jehovah…who hath not forsaken his lovingkindness and his truth" (Gen. 24:15, 27).

Every right prayer is answered before the prayer itself is finished--before we have "done speaking." This is because God has pledged His Word to us that whatsoever we ask in Christ's name (that is, in oneness with Christ and His will) and in faith, shall be done.

As God's Word cannot fail, whenever we meet those simple conditions in prayer, the answer to our prayer has been granted and completed in Heaven as we pray, even though its showing forth on earth may not occur until long afterward.

So it is well to close every prayer with praise to God for the answer that He has already granted; He who never forsakes His loving-kindness and His truth. (See Daniel 9:20-27 and 10:12.)
--Messages for the Morning Watch

When we believe for a blessing, we must take the attitude of faith, and begin to act and pray as if we had the blessing.  We must treat God as if He had given us our request. We must lean our weight over upon Him for the thing that we have claimed, and just take it for granted that He gives it, and is going to continue to give it. This is the attitude of trust.

When the wife is married, she at once falls into a new attitude, and acts in accordance with the fact; and so when we take Christ as our Savior, as our Sanctifier, as our Healer, or as our Deliverer, He expects us to fall into the attitude of recognizing Him in the capacity that we have claimed, and expect Him to be to us all that we have trusted Him for.
--Selected

"The thing I ask when God doth bid me pray,
Begins in that same act to come my way."

Choosing Love over Rights.....Dr. Charles Stanley

Choosing Love over Rights

Dr. Charles Stanley

Matthew 5:38-48

We talk a lot about rights these days. Yet the attention given to human entitlements hasn’t brought about corporate or personal freedom. Instead, most people are prisoners of jealousy (you have greater rights than I do!), greed (I deserve more!), or bitterness (my rights have been violated!).

Instead of focusing on the privileges due us, we should take the biblical perspective of loving enemies and forgiving persecutors (Matt. 5:44). Believers lay down their rights so they can take up the cause of a holy kingdom. That doesn’t mean that we let people trample on us. Rather, we offer a proper response according to biblical principles. In short, believers should be more concerned about showing God’s love to those who do wrong than about demanding their rights.

Maybe you’re thinking, But he doesn’t know how I’ve been mistreated. Indeed I do not. But what I do know is how Jesus Christ, our example, reacted to terrible abuse. He was betrayed by His friends, persecuted by His people, condemned by His peers, and crucified for our sins. Yet He said, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

Before assuming that Jesus’ capacity for forgiveness and love is out of reach for mere human beings, remember: His Spirit dwells in believers. We can choose to give away our rights and let God’s love work through us.

Luke 6:29 says to turn the other cheek and give up more than is asked because expressing love outweighs exerting our rights. You can’t lose when you show others the boundless care of the Lord. You gain His blessing, and, hopefully, someone will be saved because of your example.

The Holy Work of Napping.....🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

The Holy Work of Napping
SHALA W. GRAHAM

“In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat — for he grants sleep to those he loves.” Psalm 127:2 (NIV)

My heart was racing from exhaustion at the end of the workday. I collapsed into bed at 6 p.m., acutely aware of the many things that demanded my attention — urgent things with unmoving deadlines. I recognized the feeling as my body silently screamed at me. Physically, mentally and emotionally tapped out, the only remedy was a nap, stat!

Sometimes, I find myself in a season where rest seems elusive. I remember lamenting to a colleague about how busy I was all the time. When he returned to his office, he sent me an email with a Scripture. He had noticed the Bible on my desk and felt compelled to encourage and challenge me to rethink how I work. 

“In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat — for he grants sleep to those he loves” (Psalm 127:2).

Ouch. He barely knew me, but he was right. I had allowed the busyness of life and the worries of this world keep me from resting.

I needed to shift my faith. I needed to claim the promise in this Scripture. God will grant me sleep because He loves me. Rest is a precious gift from God, just like the Sabbath is a gift too often ignored. More importantly, I needed to dispel Satan’s lie that the world somehow rises and falls based on whether or not I do all the things. At its root, my heart was prideful and self-sufficient instead of trusting an all-powerful God who holds the whole world in His hands. 

That’s when I realized naps could be my way of balancing out the craziness of life. Naps are holy work. Naps require faith. Naps remind me of Jesus.

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus spent much of His time preaching to large crowds. At the end of Chapter 4, Jesus and His disciples are crossing the Sea of Galilee in a storm.

“And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’” (Mark 4:37-40, ESV)

While the disciples were frantically running around, Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. Jesus knew He needed to rest. So much that He could even sleep right through a storm! The swaying of the boat probably felt like resting in a rocking chair. I would even say Jesus knew there was a storm, but He made the decision to rest.

Too often, I’m like everyone else in the boat. I visibly see the storm of my to-do list raging around me, and so I think napping is irresponsible or unloving to others in my life who need me. In those moments, I think Jesus would ask me the same thing: “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”

Naps are now my jam. Even when deadlines are staring me down, I choose to nap when my body tells me it’s time because I know I’ll be better for it. I’ve learned to be OK with “well done” instead of “perfection.” As I pull the blanket up, I simply ask, “Lord, please love me and grant me sleep!”

Father, I confess to You the times when I try to take Your place as God. Help me remember that You have all things well under control and I can trust You in every season of life, especially in the storms. Help me embrace Your gift of rest because You love me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Genesis 2:2-3, “And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.” (ESV)

Isaiah 26:3, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (ESV)

Keeper Lessons.....🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Keeper Lessons
by Meghan Kleppinger

I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!" - Psalm 91:2

Everyone loves those "dog movies." You know the ones – like Homeward Bound and My Dog Skip, and Benji, and Lassie. Actually, I can’t watch those movies because I crumble to pieces whenever I see an animal in harm's way, or treated with cruelty. Yes, I know they’re fictional and special effects are used, but it started with Old Yeller when I was five… and please don't ask me to explain the rest of that story!

Well, these days, I feel as though I’m living out one of those dog story movies.

I adopted a 5-year-old collie mix last November that had been rescued by an animal society on the day she was to be euthanized. I was told she was friendly but hand-shy and that she had been abandoned and probably abused. I quickly found this to be true and it nearly drove me to tears each time I would go to pet her and she would flinch.

About two weeks after the adoption, my dog started having seizures. I can’t begin to explain the fear that consumed me. It was nothing compared to the terrified and confused look in my pup’s eyes. The vet told me that she will have to be on epilepsy meds for life and that whoever gave her up probably did so because they didn’t think she was worth the effort and cost.

I love this dog and I’m committed to keeping her healthy and safe, but I’ve had the most difficult time communicating this with her. I even named her Keeper as a reminder that she has found her forever home and that she is, indeed, a keeper.

The other day while I was walking her, a huge black dog jumped out of nowhere and attempted to attack her. I don’t know how to explain my reaction when this happened. In mamma bear fashion, I didn’t think, I reacted. I started screaming at this dog, “Get off of her!” and threw myself between the two of them. Eventually, I managed to pull out and then walk away, a little shaken, but unscathed. I saw two wet saliva spots on her skin - attempted bite marks - and realized how fortunate we were.

God started to impress some things upon me as we walked home. Here I had this dog that was abused, abandoned, unwanted, and considered worthless by someone. She has trust issues but at the same time wants so badly to please me.

It made me think of us humans. We have trust issues. We have hurts and pains that we don’t understand and don’t want to revisit. Sometimes it’s hard for those of us who have been hurt to obey God’s call to trust Him.

What God reminded me of was that He doesn’t just tell us we can trust Him, or command us to do so, but through scripture and through circumstances in our lives He shows us over and over again that we can trust Him.

I took my dog out for a walk again the same day as the earlier attack and I nearly had a nervous breakdown as I saw two huskies approaching us. I knew them to be friendly dogs, but the last thing I wanted was for Keeper to go into her Alpha-dog “I’ll protect you and myself” mode. She doesn’t initiate attacks, but she doesn’t shy away from them either.

Anyway, rather than showing her teeth or barking, like she normally does, she hid behind me.

I had spent months petting, hugging, grooming and feeding her, and telling her that she was “my girl,” but it never seemed to be enough to gain her full trust. On the day of the attack, something happened. Something clicked. She saw by my actions that I cared for her and that in turn, she could trust me.

God reminded me that Jesus stepped in and, knowing the cost, paid the ultimate sacrifice for us. Though others may think us worthless, He thought we were worth being saved to the point of death. He has proven that He cares for us and can be trusted.

Why then, do we so often try by ourselves to fight those battles that threaten us each day? Why do we go into alpha-dog mode when He has told us that He will go before us and fight for us?

Keeper ran behind me when we saw those two huskies because she knew I would protect her. Most of all, what God taught me through my dog that day is that I need to do the same… I need to seek His protective covering and let Him take care of me.

Intersecting Faith & Life: As Proverbs 3 says, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

Further Reading

Psalms 20:7
2 Chronicles 20:17

5 Relevant Truths from Corinth.....🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

5 Relevant Truths from Corinth
By Debbie McDaniel

"Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be men of courage, be strong. Do everything in love." - 1 Corinthians 16:13-14

Divisions within the church. Disagreements about how to worship. Questions about marriage. Sexual temptations. Compromise with society’s views.

Here are a few things that Paul says to the church of Corinth, which seems to be a timely word for our day. God had given him a very fruitful time of ministry while there and many people had come to know Christ. When Paul left the city and traveled to Ephesus, he later received word of trouble the Christians in Corinth were having.  It was from there that he wrote several letters of encouragement.

In 1 Corinthians 16, we read God’s instructions, penned by Paul, on - How to walk wisely, within the church, and among unbelievers. Here are the 5 commands he gives:

1. Be on your guard - The truth is, if we're not living aware, we will be taken advantage of, we will be taken off guard, possibly deceived, tricked, or thrown for a loop. The enemy wants nothing more than for us to be asleep in our faith. Let's stay spiritually awake and aware of what surrounds us. God gives us discernment for a reason.

2. Stand firm in the faith - This means to "persist." Keep standing on, remembering, the Truth of what we have believed, the Truth of what has set us free. We can't live a watered-down gospel for a world that insists we tone it down a bit. We do not have to waver in our beliefs out of a longing to be accepted from the world.

3. Be men of courage - Be people of courage and strength. Our world needs men who are willing to walk courageously. We need women who are willing to be brave. Nothing has affected me so much in recent days as the 21 kneeling men who lost their lives on a beach at the hands of evil. These will always be remembered as men of true courage. May our lives be so brave in a dark world.

4. Be strong - The word used here means "to keep increasing in strength." Not in our own strength, but in the power of the Spirit of God. He makes our footsteps firm, He makes our way strong.

5. Do everything in love - That pretty much sums it all up. Our calling. Our purpose in this life. Everything we do, all that we say, should be done in love. Pointing others to Him. Love God. Love others. It's the very love of Christ that compels us, may we walk in a manner worthy of His calling.

We will never be able to agree on everything with everyone, we're not supposed to, and that's not really the goal. We should never long to look just like the world, out of the fear that we look too different than those around us. We should not be persuaded to live in shades of gray because we don’t want to step on any toes. We’re here to be salt. We’re here to be light. We're here to make a difference, to point others to Christ. And we can be all that God calls us to be - staying strong, standing firm, living aware, walking in love, being people of courage - for this is what matters most anyway.

A Prayer for True Love

A Prayer for True Love
By Marjorie Jackson

“The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” - 1 John 4:8 (NASB)

God’s love for you and me is passionate, pure and beyond anything we’ve ever experienced, accepting us as we are. Our good, our sins, our past and our flaws are all bare before His eyes, yet being the perfect Gentleman and Father He is, He washes, changes, teaches and grows us tenderly. He reminds us of our worth and beauty as His daughters. He wants to forgive, bless and take care of us. He loves us with unconditional agape love.

Good news: His love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:8) We can love like that, too — not in our own strength or willpower, but by the Holy Spirit perfecting God’s love in our hearts. (1 John 4:12) The deeper we know God and His arduous, purposeful love for us and for others, the easier we can love others as an act of loving obedience to God.

1 John 4:20 tells it like it is: “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.” (NASB)

Of course. How can we defy God’s command to love the people He has placed in our lives and still claim to love Him? Our obedience to God’s Word comes from our love and reverence for Him who gave His all so we could keep on giving and loving like He has done for us.

It is only when we love God first and foremost that we can reach our full potential in loving others as friends, sisters, daughters, wives and mothers. As we grow in our love for God and in our knowledge of His love, we begin to change. We begin to see and love others differently.

In reality, true love happens when the stars don’t align, sparks dim and butterflies fly away. Love happens when we sacrifice, knowing we’ll get nothing in return. We are patient, kind, never envious or boastful, modeling 1 Corinthians 13 in our hearts and with our behavior without expecting payback or accolade. We lay down our lives in love.

Today’s key verse, 1 John 4:8 says, “The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” I hope you find true love. I hope you and I grow so close to God that we naturally begin to “love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5b, NASB). May you and I so overflow with God’s love that it runs up and over onto everyone we meet. His love will never fail, because God Himself is true love, and God never fails.

Heavenly Father, Thank You for loving me long before I ever loved You. Affirm Your love to me so I may know it well and pour it out on those around me. You are good, and Your love is perfect. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.