Thursday... Have you found that it doesn't fight fair?

Over in Proverbs 22:24-25, there is some very good advice. It says, (NLT), "Don't befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul."

And then over in 2 Corinthians 10:3 (MSG) it says, "The world is unprincipled. It's dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn't fight fair." And there it is.

Satan doesn't play fair. He is using anger as a means to bring discord into the church today. He is very smart but somehow we need to see his method and run away from it.

Paul goes on in verses 4-6 (MSG), "But we don't live or fight our battles that way - never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren't for marketing or manipulation, but for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives into maturity."

Verses 3 & 4 in the NIRV says, "I do live in the world. But I don't fight my battles the way the people of the world do. The weapons I fight with are not the weapons the world uses. In fact, it is the opposite."

Verse 5 (NLT says, "We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God, We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ."

So what are God-tools, His mighty weapons? Well, 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIRV) says, "The three most important things to have are faith, hope and love. But the greatest of them is love." And also obedience, maturity and wisdom go a long way too. Yes they do. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Thursday... Maybe we need this word today.

Psalm 57:1b (NIRV), "There I will stay until the danger is gone." Thursday... Maybe we need this word today. There are words in life that give us confidence no matter what we are facing. Now we have to believe them in order for them to have an impact. David wrote Psalm 57 while he was in a cave hiding from Saul who wanted to kill him and he says in the last part of verse 1, "There I will stay." It was a safe place and Saul didn't know that he was there. But he doesn't stop there. With confidence he said, "There I will stay until." And until is definitely a word of faith and confidence. "There I will stay until the danger is gone." Do we need that today? Let me give you the whole verse. In verse 1 David says, "Have mercy on me, God. Have mercy on me." And that is a great place to start in times of trouble. Maybe that is what we need to pray today, "Have mercy on me, God. Have mercy on me." It is so great to have someone...

Tuesday... We just have trouble listening.

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Friday... It is so exciting but wait a minute.

Proverbs 19:2 (NLT), "Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes." Friday... It is so exciting but wait a minute. This time of the year is so exciting. We get our paycheck from work and then we head to the store or Amazon and buy and buy and buy all those presents and then our check is gone Proverbs 19:2 (NLT) says, "Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes." But buying gifts can be so much fun and seeing how happy they are when opening those presents makes us feel so good. But then verse 3 says, "People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then they are angry at the Lord." Now for some that is their life. They get money and they spend it on their wants with no thought of what needs to be paid. An important lesson that we have learned is just because you have money in the bank doesn't mean you must spend it. But our enthusiasm takes over. But the problem is when it is gone and there is no money to pay th...

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