“A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: And their contentions are like the bars of a castle. A man's belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; And with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue: And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, And obtaineth favour of the LORD. The poor useth intreaties; But the rich answereth roughly. A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”
Proverbs 18:19-24 KJV
https://bible.com/bible/1/pro.18.19-24.KJV
Live Prepared
Pause and think of the people who, at a moment’s notice, have to be ready for anything. Maybe your list includes first responders, the military, athletes, teachers, parents, pilots, surgeons, or pastors.
But does your list include you?
As followers of Jesus, we are called to…
“…Be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”
1 Peter 3:15 NIV
We can’t expect people to observe what Jesus has commanded unless we are also observing His commands ourselves.
Do we want people to learn about God’s love? Then we need to show God’s love to people. Do we want people to learn about Jesus’ compassion? Then we need to be compassionate. Do we want people to give generously? Then we need to be good stewards of our own money. Do we want people to study God’s Word? Then we need to study it for ourselves.
When you give Jesus control over your life, you allow His ...