Asking For More
~Jabez~
Scripture: 1 Chronicles 4:10
And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, "Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!" So God granted him what he requested
Lesson Objective: To understand that God wants to give us more.
There has been a book, several sermons and much discussion concerning this one verse in the Bible. The Bible does not have any other reference to Jabez. However we do know that the Bible does say that we can ask God for anything and if it is consistent with his will, we will receive. I would like to think that our wish must not be for a selfish reason but to make a difference in the lives of others. Solomon asked for wisdom so that he could serve the people better and he received the wisdom and along with it also came riches. We must remember that all that we ask is for one reason and one reason only and that is to use it to carry out the will of God.
Thought for today: God gives us blessings so that we can be a blessing to others. We are the arms. legs and feet for God here on earth.
Life Of Deception
~Jacob~
God is With Us Always
Scripture: Genesis 27:21
Then Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not."
Lesson Objective: To understand that a life of deception works both ways.
I remember when I first saw a magician act and like many children was amazed by the tricks that I saw. I wondered how did he do it and even went as far as to buy some magic cards but I could never make them work. Later I understood that the key to any magician is not the trick but the deception. The real trick for a magician is having the audience concentrate on one item while the magician actually works from the other direction. Deception for the magician worked as entertainment, but we should never attempt to deceive or lie to others. Trust is hard to earn and even harder to get back once you have lied and deceived others. Also, we know from the story of Jacob that he was deceived by his father-in-law so he reaped what he sowed.
Thought for today: Deception began in the Garden of Eden and is still crawling around today.
Favoritism Always Causes Problems
~Israel~
God Is Our Savior
Scripture: Genesis 37:3
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors.
Lesson Objective: To understand that God does not like us to have favorites.
It is great to have a favorite color or root for a favorite team or have a favorite restaurant, but what happens when you allow that favorite to become a barrier between you and others. Someone buys you a suit but it is not your favorite color, do you still wear the suit? Your boss is a fan of another team and he gives you a cup for his team, do you use the cup? Your date does not like the restaurant. These things may be trivia but what happens when you exhibit favoritism to one person at the expense of others? We must be careful that we do not allow our personal favoritisms to get in the way of how we treat others around us and especially those in our immediate family.
Thought for today: We may love differently, but we must love all equally.
Servant Leadership
~James~
Scripture: James 1:1
James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad: Greetings
Lesson Objective: To understand that with leadership, comes the requirement of serving.
It is an interesting thought that when one becomes a leader that they become a servant to those to whom they lead. The fact is that every thought or decision of the leader is not based upon the personal desires of the leader, but what is best for those that he leads. We may think that I want to be the boss so that I can be free to make my own decisions but this is rarely the case. James, Paul, and Jude clearly stated that they were bondservants of God which meant that they did not do their wishes, but the wishes of God. The commandment of God is to love others as ourselves so that when we make decisions as a leader it must be to the benefit of others before ourselves.
Thought for today: Leading others means serving others.
Tuning Into God
~Jeremiah~
Why Question The Love of God
Scripture: Jeremiah 7:1
The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying
Lesson Objective: To understand the need to really listen to God.
I like to think of listening to God is like listening to the radio. There are many radio stations that are out on the airwaves and are there constantly but I do not hear them until I tune into the right station. I may even have the knob on the right location, but have the button on AM rather than FM. I must be careful to dial into God because he is always talking to me, but I am not always listening. I decide daily which stations that I am going to listen. I even program the knobs to go to my favorite station. What is great is that I never have to worry about static because God is always near by and he always has a strong signal.
Thought for today: Wouldn’t it be nice to program our heart to tune into God every waking moment?
Sharing Wisdom
~Jethro~
Scripture: Exodus 18:24
So Moses heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said.
Lesson Objective: To understand that God expects us to share his wisdom with others.
How many times have we watched as someone was making a wrong decision and we said nothing while they were headed in the wrong direction? We felt that it was none of our business. We have watched people fail so that we could sit back and make fun of them. Neither is consistent with the will of God. We must understand that our experiences are to be used as a lesson for ourselves as well as to share those lessons with others so that they can benefit from our experiences. It is interesting to note that Moses father-in-law, Jethro came to Moses for only a short time and after giving Moses advice, then left and returned home. We may make fun of in-law relationships but this is an example of a good relationship where the father-in-law was able to give advice and the son-in-law Moses heeded his advice.
Thought for today: Make it your business today to offer someone a biblical word of advice on how they can allow God to make a difference in their life.