“Two things have I required of thee; Deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? Or lest I be poor, and steal, And take the name of my God in vain. Accuse not a servant unto his master, Lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty. There is a generation that curseth their father, And doth not bless their mother. There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, And yet is not washed from their filthiness. There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up. There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, To devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.”
Proverbs 30:7-14 KJV
https://bible.com/bible/1/pro.30.7-14.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 ...