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Wednesday... Now this can and does make such a difference.


Wednesday... Now this can and does make such a difference.

And we are seeing a real attitude problem in the day in which we are living.

Now the word encouragement can mean we are striving to lift people up when they are down but it also can be striving to get others to do better. And our attitude in that can make such a difference.

Paul in his second letter to the Thessalonians in 3:8-10 (NLT) says, "We never accepted food from anyone without paying for it. We worked hard day and night so we would not be a burden to any of you. We certainly had the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to be an example to follow. Even when we were with you, we gave you this command: 'Those unwilling to work will not get to eat.'"  

He goes on in verses 11-12, "Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and meddling in other people's business. We command such people and urge them in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and work to earn a living." Now the word urge could be encouraged. 

Now back in Proverbs 13 King Solomon encourages people in this area. In verse 4 he says, "Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper."

Verse 11, "Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time." The Message says, "Easy come, easy go, but steady diligence pays off."

Verse 14 (NLT), "People who despise advice are asking for trouble; those who respect a command will succeed."

Those are tremendous words to encourage us and Paul also says this in verses 13-14, "As for the rest of you, dear brothers and sisters, never get tired of doing good. Take note of those who refuse to obey what we said in this letter. Stay away from them so they will be ashamed." But he then says, and this but is so important. You see our attitude does make such a difference. And this is where so many of us have a real problem. We may be hard workers. We may respect a command. We may not be idle. But we also could have a real attitude.

Paul gives this encouragement in verse 15 (MSG). He says, "But don't treat them as an enemy. Sit down and talk about the problem as someone who cares." You see, our attitude does make such a difference. Instead of pointing a finger, reach out with open arms. Not as their enemy but as one who cares, really cares.

And we as believers need to be encouraged in this. The NLT says, "Don't think of them as enemies, but warn them as brothers and sisters." Our attitude can and does make such a difference. 

In verse 5 Pauls says, "May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ." This needs to be a personal prayer. "May the Lord lead MY heart into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ." Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning



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