Prayer
– Lord, I understand that I am accountable for my own actions. Help me to not
live for myself, but to put You first in everything that I do—honoring and
worshipping You moment by moment throughout my day—because it is Your day. This
is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it!
God set the rainbow in the sky.
This is the day that the Lord has made.
Those
who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. Those who eat any
kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before
eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord
and give thanks to God. For we don't live for ourselves or die for
ourselves. If we live, it's to honor the Lord. And if we die, it's to honor the
Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Christ died and rose
again for this very purpose--to be Lord both of the living and of the dead. So
why do you condemn another believer? Why do you look down on another believer?
Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For the
Scriptures say, "'As surely as I live,' says the LORD, 'every knee will
bend to me, and every tongue will confess and give praise to God.'" Yes,
each of us will give a personal account to God. So let's stop condemning each
other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another
believer to stumble and fall. Romans
14:6-13
Meditate.
Consider that you don’t live for yourself.
How do
you honor the Lord?
There is so much in this passage. I
chose it because it reminds me that we will all stand before the judgment
seat of God. Stand. Kneel. We will worship the Lord God—in Spirit and in
Truth. That passage goes on to say that each of us will give a personal
account to God. We are responsible for every thought, word, and action
throughout our lives. Paul advises us to not condemn others, but decide
instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to
stumble and fall. I have to look at my own life and tell myself to not think,
speak, or act in such a way that causes me to fall…to not honor the Lord. Just
a few sentences earlier in that paragraph Paul wrote that we don’t live for
ourselves. Everything we do should honor the Lord. As Christians—Jesus is
the one we live for. If we aren’t allowing Him to live in and through us…are we
living as Christians? Good question.
Just as Joshua challenged the
Israelites as they were about to cross the Jordan River into the Promised Land,
we are faced with the same question.
"So fear the LORD and serve
him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when
they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD alone. But
if you refuse to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve.
Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will
it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my
family, we will serve the LORD." Joshua
24:14-15 (Underlined for emphasis.)
God hears
us…always. He knows what we think, say, and do even before we do—but He’s given
us free will to do as we please. What is your choice? Will you decide to
live in such a way that pleases Him?
Verses
of Salvation ~ The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help. He
rescues them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many
troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time. For the LORD protects the
bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken! Calamity will surely
overtake the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be punished. But the
LORD will redeem those who serve him. No one who takes refuge in him will be
condemned. Psalm
34:17-22
© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise
noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character
Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories
No comments:
Post a Comment