Monday... This slipped up on me this morning.

The sentence is found in Psalm 58:11 (NLT). It says, "There truly is a reward for those who live for God."

There are a lot of people at work who are striving to end the year on the upswing. There could be a bonus at the end of the year. They work hard and hope that they will be rewarded. For the kids there is that Santa Claus thing. You better watch out Santa Claus is coming to town. And then those in school those midterms are coming and they want those good grades. We want to be rewarded, don't we?

And the same is true in our Christian life and this sentence can be a motivator.

Proverbs 28 gives out some of those rewards: Verse 1 (MSG) says, "The wicked are edgy with guilt, ready to run off even when no one's after them, Honest people are relaxed and confident, bold as lions."

Verse 10, "Lead good people down a wrong path and you'll come to a bad end; do good and you'll be rewarded."

Verse 13, "You can't whitewash your sins and get by with it; you find mercy admitting and leaving them." Now that is a great reward.

Verse 14, "A tenderhearted person lives a blessed life; a hardhearted person lives a hard life."

Another one, verse 18 says, "Walk straight - live well and be saved; a devious life is a doomed life."

Verse 19, "Work your garden - you'll end up with plenty of food; play and party - you'll end up with an empty plate."

Verse 20, "Committed and persistent work pays off; get-rich schemes are ripoffs."

And then verse 25, "A grasping person stirs up trouble; but trust in God brings a sense of well-being."

It is so true, "There truly is a reward for those who live for God." So let's keep at it. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Tuesday... I wonder what would happen if we didn't take the credit?

Nehemiah 6:16b (NLT), "They realized this work had been done with the help of our God." Tuesday... I wonder what would happen if we didn't take the credit? Over in the Old Testament in the book of Nehemiah it tells of a major task that through the leadership of Nehemiah was accomplished. The walls of Jerusalem had been torn down and God had laid it on Nehemiah to build those walls back up. It was definitely an almost impossible task but Nehemiah 6:15-16 says, "So on October 2 the wall was finished - just fifty-two days after we had begun. When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God." Now, we so many times want to take credit for doing the impossible. It would make such a difference for us. But I wonder what would happen through us if God got the credit? Psalm 96 tells us what we are to do. Verses 2-3 says, "Sing to the LORD; praise his name. ...

Tuesday... We just have trouble listening.

1 Corinthians 13:7 (NLT), "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." Tuesday... We just have trouble listening. Over in Jeremiah 25:4 (NLT) it says, "Again and again the LORD has sent you his servants, the prophets, but you have not listened or even paid attention." And Jeremiah went on to tell what was going to happen. There will be consequences if we do not listen to what God says through his Word. Now the Apostle Paul over in 1 Corinthians was having a problem with some professed Christ followers who were having trouble at listening. And we too can have problems at listening. We can think that being a Christ follower means we do a lot of finger pointing and we give up on people who don't do what we say. We can even do that in our families. But Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:7 (NLT), "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." In verse ...

Thursday... Yet, now this is true.

Colossians 1:22a (NLT), "Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body." Thursday... Yet, now this is true. Now Paul a prisoner in Rome is writing a letter to a church in Colossae. And in Colossians 1:21 (MSG) he says, "Once you were alienated from God and were hostile in your minds, engaging in evil deeds" The NLT says "This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated by your evil thoughts and actions." And that is where so many in this world live today. They are blowing it and they don't know what to do. Yes, they are hostile in their minds and they are engaging in evil deeds but there is Good News. Now Paul in verses 19-20 sets the stage for an answer to those who don't want to live that way. He says, "For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and earth b...

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