“We work together with God, and we beg you to make good use of God’s kindness to you. In the Scriptures God says,
“When the time came, I listened to you,
and when you needed help, I came to save you.”
That time has come. This is the day for you to be saved.” 2 Corinthians 6:1-2, CEV

Imagine that you give someone a fabulous gift. When they receive it, they positively beam with excitement and enthusiasm, and thank you profusely for giving them for giving them such a great present.

Then they toss it into their closet and ignore it forever.

You might wonder about the authenticity of their praise.

We might also wonder about our own spiritual walk when we do not “make good use of God’s kindness” to us (2 Corinthians 6:1). Although we are not saved by our own works, our response in faith to God’s grace given by Jesus’ death and resurrection reflects the change which has occurred in our hearts as the Holy Spirit has come to live and work inside us.

If we believe we have found the greatest hope, the greatest love, the greatest truth in the world, how could we not share this truth with others? The apostle Paul has a stern warning for us: “Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off.” (Romans 11:22) That’s pretty harsh, but underscores the importance of making use of the kindness God has shown to us.

According to a survey of over 700 Muslims who came to faith in Christ, by far the largest single thing that influenced them to become Christians was seeing the lives of Christians that stood out due to the kindness and love they demonstrated. Therefore, let’s accept God’s kindness with thanksgiving, and not just put it on the shelf, but in turn offer kindness to others, so that they too might come to know the gracious God who proves such a wonderful gift for all who are willing to accept it.

Question: How has God shown you kindness, and how can you through everyday actions show kindness to others?

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“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice” (Philippians 4:4)!

How can we have love, peace, joy, and victory in our lives? Well, God’s Word tells us to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). And when we are filled with the Spirit, we not only have love, peace, and joy, we have the beautiful qualities of patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). We can be filled with the Spirit, and continue to be so by following these Scriptural instructions:

Repent: Of anything–actions, attitudes, words, bad habits–anything that might stand between you and the peace and joy of the Lord.  True acknowledgment of sin and sorrow over it releases its hold over you and your life. (See James 4:8-10)

Surrender To God: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in views of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifice, holy and please to God—which is your spiritual worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:1-2).

Ask God’s Forgiveness Whenever You Err: To keep Christ’s peace and joy, don’t ever let anything come between you and Him. (See 1 John 1:9)

Forgive: God, Yourself, Others:  Ask the Lord to reveal to you if there is anyone who has ever done you ill whom you need to forgive; and with His help, forgive that person. Do  this to exorcise the ghosts in your past that may rise up periodically to haunt you and hurt your life and relationships.  Do this to have peace with God, yourself, and others.  (See Luke 11:4, Mark 11:25-26, Ephesians 4:32.)

Trust in The Lord In Everything: Be anxious about nothing (Philippians 4:4-8).

Begin Your Day by Rejoicing in the Lord praising and thanking Him (Psalm 34:1).  Enjoy life to the fullest!  Report to the Lord for duty each morning, willing to serve Him however He may wish, in whatever He may want to do through you, in ministering to others, in being His light to your world.

Whenever Something Gets you Down, Praise The Lord (even and especially when you don’t feel like it).  This will lift you out of the dungeon of despair (Acts 16:25-26).  It worked for Paul and Silas; and it works for me every time!

Control Your Thoughts: Bring every thought into obedience to Christ (1 Corinthians 10:5). Be on guard against our enemy Satan and his devious devices.  Study            Ephesians 4:26-5:11, Ephesians 6:10-18; 1 Peter 5:8.

Serve the Lord: He has given you a gift or gifts–and talents–with which to serve Him, His people, and others for His glory.  Seek His guidance.

Read: Psalms 23, 34, 37, 51; Matthew 5 to 7; John 14 to 17; Romans 6, 7, 8, and 12; Galatians 5; Book of Ephesians; Philippians 4–until you fully understand what it is to die to self and walk in the Spirit.

Memorize: Psalms 23 and 34; Proverbs 3:5-8; Isaiah 26:3; Matthew 6:9-15, 31-33; Luke 10:17; John 10:27-28; Romans 5:8, 6:11; 8:18, 28; 10:9-13; 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 10:13, 31; 2 Corinthians 1:3-5, 12:9-10; Galatians 2:20, 4:7, 6:2; Ephesians 2:8-10, 4:32, 6:10-18; Philippians 1:6, 3:13-14, 4:4-8, 11, 13; Colossians 3:2-3; 2 Timothy 1:7, 12; Hebrews 4:15-16; 1 John 1:9, 4:4, 18-21.

Lord, give me your incredible joy, peace, and victory! Amen

Questions: We’re only human. How can we consistently have Christ’s joy, peace, and victory? How can we find time to do all the things we need to do to have Christ’s joy and peace?

Feeling impatient? Would you like us to pray with you about it? (Note: Please allow 1-2 days for a reply, an opportunity to practice patience!)

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12).

I was feeling put out; inconvenienced and impatient.

Thanks to those industrious criminals who’ve decided to manufacture their own medications, the singular antihistamine that effectively relieves my seasonal allergy symptoms is now available only behind the counter. I have to wait in line at one of the few pharmacies that still carry it. And I have to sign for it, too, presumably so I can be quickly apprehended should I purchase enough to use it in some criminal fashion.

Aside: I don’t even cook food. I’m not about to start cooking up medicine. Anyway …

There were two men in line in front of me. The first man, the one taking forever, was probably in his thirties or early forties. He wore loose jeans and a sweatshirt and occasionally turned back to smile apologetically as the clerk took her sweet time trying to get his insurance to go through. She seemed to know the man, or at least be familiar with him, and made polite conversation while trying multiple magic formulas. Finally, she asked for his wife’s social security number. He had to call his wife to get the number and after he got it, he kept talking to her, as though we had all day and night to stand there and wait. Her social security number didn’t work either so he told the clerk it was okay, he’d figure something out, but she insisted on continuing her efforts.

The fellow in front of me who was second in line, starting swaying and shifting his weight from foot to foot like a chained elephant, possibly with the idea that somebody might notice his obvious distress and open another register. It was right there – a register with nobody on it. Open it already.

I was asking myself how long I’d be willing to stand there when a second clerk appeared in the window next to the first clerk. She greeted the man in jeans and asked how he was doing, oblivious to the long line and the empty register where she clearly ought to be. Then she seemed to suddenly notice the man was bald.

“Hey, where’d your hair go?” she asked cheerfully.

“Well,” he said bashfully, “I didn’t want to have more hair than my wife … I shaved it.”

And right then, it was as though time stood still.

The talk continued. They discussed the man’s wife, her improvement and the oncologist’s advice.  And I wished I was invisible because if anybody happened to look, they would have seen such shame washing over me. I should be grateful that I have twenty minutes to spend standing in line, that I can stand at all, that I have enough money to buy medicine and insurance to pay for most of it.

Soon afterward, somebody opened a second register. They quickly helped the swaying man, and I was no longer in a hurry but they got me out of there in a jiffy. I’m home now, comfortable, fed, and medicated for allergies, but I can’t stop thinking about that man and his wife. I wonder if they have children and what their days are like.

Next time I’m stuck in line, I’ll pray for the people ahead of me instead of praying that they’ll hurry up.

Question: What causes you to feel impatient? Will you pray for patience in this area?

Originally written by Charles H. Spurgeon, published in “Mornings & Evenings,” entry for August 1st, PM.
Updated to modern English by Darren Hewer, 2011.

“You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance.” Psalm 65:11

All year round, every hour of every day, God is richly blessing us. He blesses us when we sleep, and when we wake His mercy is upon us. The sun may leave us a legacy of darkness, but our God never ceases to shine on His children with beams of love.

Like a river, His loving kindness is always flowing, with a fullness as inexhaustible as His own nature. Like the atmosphere which constantly surrounds the earth and sustains all life, the compassion of God surrounds all His creatures. In it, we live, and move, and have our being. (Acts 17:27-28)

Yet as the sun on summer days encourages us with beams more warm and bright than at other times, and as rivers are at certain seasons swollen by the rain, so is it with the mercy of God. His mercy has its golden hours, its days of overflow, when the Lord magnifies His grace to His children.

The blessings of the joyous days of harvest are a special season of excessive favor. It is in the glory of autumn that the ripe gifts of providence are abundantly bestowed. It is the mellow season of realization. Before there was nothing but hope and expectation, but great is the joy of harvest. Happy are the harvesters who fill their arms with the yield of heaven!

The Psalmist tells us that the harvest is the “crown of the year.” Surely these crowning mercies call for crowning thanksgiving! Let us give it all to God it by fostering the inward emotion of gratitude. Let our hearts be warmed! Let our spirits remember, meditate, and think about the goodness of the Lord! Then let us praise Him with our lips, and magnify His name, from whose abundance all goodness flows. Finally, let us glorify God by yielding our gifts to His cause, giving a practical proof of our gratitude to the Lord of the harvest!

Question: How has God blessed you lately? Can you set aside time today to thank Him?

“Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions” 1 John 3:18

The story is told about two farmers. Every day, one of them would haul pails of water up the steep slope to his terraced field and irrigate his meager crop.

The second farmer tilled the terrace just below, and he would poke a hole in the dyke and let the other farmer’s water run down into his field.

The first farmer was upset. Being a Christian, he went to his pastor and asked for advice. The pastor told him to keep on watering as before and to say nothing. So, the farmer returned to his fields and the watering of his crop, but the farmer below him continued to drain off his water. Nothing had changed.

After a few days, the first farmer went to his pastor again. The pastor told him to go a step further – to water his neighbor’s crop! So the next day, the farmer brought water to his neighbor’s field and watered the crops. After that, he watered his own field.

This went on for three days, and not a word was exchanged between the two farmers. But after the third day, the second farmer came to the first farmer.

“How do I become a Christian?” he asked.

“There is a saying, ‘Love your friends and hate your enemies.’ But I say: Love your enemies! … If you are friendly only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even the heathens do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48).

Bible Reading: 1 John 3:14-17

Today’s Action Point: I will make every effort to demonstrate the love of Christ by the way I act toward others.

Kindness in word or action can surprise the recipient. It can change someone’s day, or even their life. Can this trait characterize our lives on a moment by moment basis? Take a deeper look at kindness in this study.

Kindness in word or action can surprise the recipient. It can change someone’s day, or even their life. Is an occasional act of kindness enough, or can this trait characterize our lives on a moment by moment basis? Take a deeper look at kindness in this study.

“We work together with God, and we beg you to make good use of God’s kindness to you. In the Scriptures God says,
“When the time came, I listened to you,
and when you needed help, I came to save you.”
That time has come. This is the day for you to be saved.” 2 Corinthians 6:1-2, CEV

Imagine that you give someone a fabulous gift. When they receive it, they positively beam with excitement and enthusiasm, and thank you profusely for giving them for giving them such a great present.

Then they toss it into their closet and ignore it forever.

You might wonder about the authenticity of their praise.

We might also wonder about our own spiritual walk when we do not “make good use of God’s kindness” to us (2 Corinthians 6:1). Although we are not saved by our own works, our response in faith to God’s grace given by Jesus’ death and resurrection reflects the change which has occurred in our hearts as the Holy Spirit has come to live and work inside us.

If we believe we have found the greatest hope, the greatest love, the greatest truth in the world, how could we not share this truth with others? The apostle Paul has a stern warning for us: “Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off.” (Romans 11:22) That’s pretty harsh, but underscores the importance of making use of the kindness God has shown to us.

According to a survey of over 700 Muslims who came to faith in Christ, by far the largest single thing that influenced them to become Christians was seeing the lives of Christians that stood out due to the kindness and love they demonstrated. Therefore, let’s accept God’s kindness with thanksgiving, and not just put it on the shelf, but in turn offer kindness to others, so that they too might come to know the gracious God who proves such a wonderful gift for all who are willing to accept it.

Question: How has God shown you kindness, and how can you through everyday actions show kindness to others?

About the Author: Darren Hewer

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“But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16).

Many are unfamiliar with the fact that our word “holiday” comes from an old English word whose original meaning was Holy Day. Though our secular society seeks to drain all that is holy from Christmas leaving little more than tinsel and toys, eggnog and elves, we can bring back a sense of sacredness to the holiday.

As believers, we understand that while God alone is truly holy – pure and sinless – He calls us to holy living.  We approach God with reverence and awe because of His holiness. The Scriptures, the Sabbath, and days of remembrance and rejoicing are sacred because God ordained them.

We can bring a sense of sacredness to our celebration of Christmas, simply by seeking to be holy ourselves.

The call to holiness is found throughout the Bible:

•    “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12).

•    “May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all His holy ones” (1 Thessalonians 3:13).

•    “But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16).

The concept of holiness also encompasses the idea of being set apart for God or consecrated to Him.  How do we embark on this journey of holiness?

Treat His name, His word, and the building where believers gather with the reverence they deserve. Begin each day by taking time to speak with God and offering yourself to Him, to be used for His purposes. Mediate on God’s word. Ask God for His cleansing power in your life.  Be holy these holidays and let the world be in awe of what God has done in your life.

God, You are holy. Make me like You.  Amen.

Questions: How can we strive for holiness in the midst of all our imperfections? What do you do to seek God and His holiness?

About the Author Suzanne Benner

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Cancer: it was the word of the day yesterday. My 74 year-old grandmother was admitted to the hospital with back pain.  Now she was being discharged with orders to see an oncologist. They found a tumor. “We believe its cancer. There’s a chance that it isn’t, but it doesn’t look good!”

My active grandma went from happy and healthy to full despair in just a few short days. Plagued with the thoughts of what our new journey would entail, tears filled our eyes, hopelessness filled our hearts, and our minds couldn’t bear to take in the pain she may endure in her last days.

As my mom cried out to me with the despondent news, I replied with a sigh. Searching for hope and truth I said, “Well, mom the pain won’t last forever!”

Where was my compassion? Did I acknowledge the fear, the pain, the emptiness that filled our hearts and minds? How cliche! What I said was true, but it wasn’t compassionate. By saying what I said I showed complete disregard for how my family was feeling at that very moment. When my mom pointed it out to me, I was convicted.

In my struggle with infertility remarks such as: “It will happen when it’s time!” open the floodgates of negative emotions including loneliness, anger, and a feeling that says, “No one gets this! No one really cares to try to understand!” It certainly is not received as compassion- a word defined as “a tender feeling.”

I’m frustrated with the Christian clichés. “There’s a reason for everything!” “It will happen when it’s time!” “He’s in a better place now!”

These sayings are cliché and people know it! And quite frankly, they’re lacking compassion. I believe as Christians we need to start showing the love and compassion of Christ. Start saying things like, “I know it must really hurt”,” I know this is scary”, “I know you miss your loved one!” “I can’t pretend to understand your pain, but can I pray for you!?” “What can I do to help?” OR we could just listen, and pray.

Dear Jesus, help us to be compassionate. Help us not to forget that you give us hope, but you also taught us to be compassionate. Help us not to be so focused on the future, that we forget to meet people where they’re at- where they’re hurting. We thank you that you are a compassionate God who loves us! Make us more like you! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Questions: Why do we as Christians so often not know how to show compassion?

About the Author Dawn Kurtz