Posts Categorized: Devotional

Please God First

Posted August 13, 2018 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

1 Thessalonians 2:3-4 (CEB)

Our appeal isn’t based on false information, the wrong motives, or deception. Rather, we have been examined and approved by God to be trusted with the good news, and that’s exactly how we speak. We aren’t trying to please people, but we are trying to please God, who continues to examine our hearts.

Consider

From the time of Paul until the present, people have been skeptical of the good news of Christ. In Paul’s time, scam artists and false healers had come among the believers in Thessalonica and given traveling preachers like Paul a bad reputation.

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Better Than Kisses

Posted August 6, 2018 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Proverbs 27:5-6 (NLT)

An open rebuke is better than hidden love!

Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.

Consider

This pair of proverbs, upon reflection, may seem reasonable. A friend’s critical observation, after all, should mean more to us than empty flattery from an adversary.

In that moment of confrontation, however, we often react as if we believe the opposite. We take offense at a well-meant rebuke because we expect our friends to affirm us and our enemies to attack us.

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On Trial for Christ

Posted July 30, 2018 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

2 Corinthians 6:3-10 (NRSV)

Consider

When we accept the lordship of Christ in our lives, we also receive God’s commission to be ministers of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18). Like the apostle Paul, we becoming living advertisements for the miraculous new life that awaits anyone who will respond to God’s call to be loved and saved to eternal life. Whether we like it or not, people judge Christ by what they see in us. We become the incarnate gospel, the flesh that people can see and touch and evaluate.

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First Loyalty

Posted July 23, 2018 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

Proverbs 3:3-6 (NRSV)

Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and of people.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Consider

Loyalty is a character trait that nurtures healthy relationships. To be loyal means to commit unswerving support to another person. It means standing with that person against danger or opposition.

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Pray for All People

Posted July 16, 2018 | Judith Ingram

Scripture

1 Timothy 2:1-4 (NLT)

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.

Consider

Implicit in Paul’s counsel to “pray for all people” is a difficult but important corollary—let there be no one for whom you will not pray.

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