Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

 Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves. Romans 12:10 NIV We're not simply to wash our hands of one another when we don't feel like loving each other. We are to be devoted to one another in love. That means we govern our feelings; we're not governed by our feelings. There's no exception to this verse. It's not that we're to be devoted to one another in love if we feel like it. The Apostle Paul is unequivocal in his command. We're to honour one another above ourselves. We're not to be selfish in any way. We're not to be self-absorbed or self- righteous. Note that Paul doesn't say we're not to honour ourselves. We should have self respect. It's just that we should honour others above ourselves. 'Lord our God, please help us to honour you and be devoted to you and to one another. May you forgive us when we fail, in Jesus's name, amen'.  

 1 Peter 4:16 ESV  Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.     Everyone suffers. Some suffering is deserved; some isn't. Christians have extra sufferings. On top of worldly sufferings, Christians also get mocked, ill treated, spoken badly of, and persecuted. Many to this day are even martyred for their faith in places like Nigeria and North Korea. Suffering feels shameful. Counterintuitively, the Apostle Peter commands us not to be ashamed, not to shame us if we feel that way, but to encourage us. If we suffer as Christians, we have no need to feel ashamed. Even if we were to deservedly suffer for some sinful action, we can leave our shame at the foot of the cross. The early church rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Christ. To this day, the 'persecuted church's doesn't tend to ask for persecution to stop. 'Blessed are the persecuted': they tend to ask for prayer for divine ...

 Philippians 4:13 ESV  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.  Paul wasn't talking about being able to climb Mount Everest. In the context of this verse he was saying that he'd learnt to be content in any and every situation. Whether he had plenty or little, he was happy in his God. Our love of God shouldn't be conditional on having a lot. We should love him for the eternal life he gives us. We can be grateful for our daily bread. I'm sure there were times Paul went without food, so bad were his circumstances at the time. Yet he didn't moan at God. He continued to rely on him. God will give us the strength we need for any and every situation we face. He won't let us bite off more than we can chew. He will look after us until he calls us home. 'God Almighty, we're grateful for your provision and ask that we would be content in you even in hard times. For we ask in Jesus' name, amen'. 

 2 Corinthians 9:8 ESV And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.   The Corinthian church was wealthy, but not so generous. He wasn't asking them to 'sow' into his ministry like some charlatan. He was asking them to provide for their impoverished Jerusalemite brethren. I love how positive Paul is with the Corinthian church. He doesn't metaphorically beat them about their heads with a stick. He gently encourages them to step into all that God has been gracious to them for. God isn't gracious to us so we can pay ourselves on our backs. He doesn't show us mercy to make us self-sufficient and uncaring about anyone else. He wants us to abound in every good work. The Lord expects us to be generous. We can't say 'I don't think that's my calling'. It's all of our callings to be generous. 'Sovereign Lord, please forgive any stinginess in us. Hel...

 Romans 5:3-4 ESV  Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope   We might think we have to lie down under a rock when we suffer, but Paul insists we can rejoice. Suffering isn't meaningless. It can produce endurance. If we never suffered, we'd have precious little endurance. The slightest little bump in the road would knock us for six. If we want to develop good characters, we need to endure suffering. Good character is developed in the furnace of affliction. Our dross is skimmed away. We come out purer than gold. If we can see that our characters are developing positively, we can have hope that God is working on us. He wants to transform us into the likeness of Christ. If we can see him doing that, we can be encouraged. 'Sovereign Lord God, please help us to see that you work all things together for good for those that love you, who are called according to your p...

 Psalm 94:19 ESV When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.   I'm sure most of us have many cares at some point in our lives. Bereavement, separation, unemployment and illness can all add to our cares for example. This verse assures us we don't need to be overwhelmed by our cares however. In the context of the Psalm, the Psalmist's cares weren't selfish. He was concerned for the plight of God's people. They were being oppressed. God consoled the Psalmist that the oppressors of his people would assuredly get their comeuppance. That might sound harsh. Yet it is what they deserved. Just to know that the God of justice is on our side should be enough to console us. We shouldn't need clement circumstances to console us. We can be fearless even though the valley of the shadow of death with God by our sides. 'Dear God Almighty, we're so grateful for your consolations in the midst of our cares. Please help us to rest in you. In Christ...

 James 1:2-3  Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.       What brings us joy? Our families, friends, fun etc.? Chocolate, coffee, or cheerful chatter? James commands us to rejoice when we have trials!  Our gut reaction with trials and tests is to feel nervous about them. Yet if we're well prepared, we can actually look forward to proving ourselves. God never gives us a trial we can't pass with his help. The devil tempts us to throw in the trial. God tests us like precious metals. In his trials he skims away the dress in our lives and purifies us. Of course, joy is counterintuitive when we go through hard times. Yet if we can see what the hard times are producing, we can be encouraged. God is proving our faith and making us steadfast and enduring: by his power we will assuredly prevail over all that assails us.  'Dear Lord our God, please help u...

 1 Timothy 4:8 ESV  for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.   The Apostle Paul doesn't say bodily training is of no value. Neither however does he say that bodily training is of value in every way, like some gym enthusiasts might be tempted to say! Instead, he insists that physical exercise is of some value. Paul wasn't Gnostic. He didn't think our bodies are irrelevant and unimportant. He knew the importance of being healthy. Godliness isn't just important: it is essential. We need to be holy if we want to see the Lord. How do we get holy? By trusting in him to be our righteousness and salvation. Some people might describe trying to be Christlike as 'pie in the sky when you die'. Others might say that it is 'steak on a plate while you wait'! Living God's way isn't a killjoy highway like the devil might try and deceive us; it's the ...

 Hebrews 12:1 ESV   Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us   God doesn't ask the impossible of us to follow him. Many have gone before us. We can take encouragement from their example.  I think the writer differentiates between weights and sins because some things aren't necessarily sinful, but they can weigh us down with wrong priorities. Money for example is a good servant but a bad master. I'm reminded of the parable of the Sower where Jesus warns about the deceitfulness of riches. We don't get to take anything with us into eternity. So it's best to travel light. There's nothing wrong with making money; just not to be miserly and greedy with it. We're in a race. We can invest our money for example in the Kingdom of God. We can be generous and help needy brethren.  'Dear God, please help us to f...