"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful."
- Colossians 4:2 NIV
In everything you and I do we should always be in prayer talking with God throughout the day. When we pray we should first thank God for what He has given us coming to Him with gratitude and a thankful heart. I pray that we can all come to God with our needs but have a grateful heart while doing it.
God Bless.
“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”
- Exodus 20:12 NIV
“Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.”
- Colossians 3:20 NIV
What does it mean to honor your parents? Honor has a few definitions but when God says honor your parents He means to show them respect. You may not agree with them on certain subjects but you still need to show them respect and respect their views. As adults we may struggle with this today as social media can bring out the uglies sometimes. Comments on posts can be said for the whole world to see instead of them just being said in private. We need to make sure that even if we don’t agree we need to keep in the forefront of our mind the respect for our parents that God wants us to give.
This goes into even more depth when you look at the New Testament verse in Colossians. For our children we want to teach them that God wants them to obey us for we know what’s best for them, as long as us as parents are following God’s rules of the Bible. It can be ok sometimes for our kids to question the reason for our answers but they must do it with respect and honor what we say by not going against our answers. Having our kids at a young age either hear from or read for themselves the Bible daily will help them to live Godly lives. Us as parents need to also show this lifestyle by living it ourselves. This way all of us are honoring our Father in Heaven.
God Bless
Day 4
According to Spotify my third favorite artist is John Williams. I guess I wouldn’t even think of adding him to my list of favorite artists but it does make sense. I’m a huge Star Wars fan so I’m listening to the scores from those films a lot plus other soundtrack scores. A few non movie scores I like from John Williams are his Olympic scores from 1996. Brings you back to a time when the games are playing on TV.
When I think of the Olympics I think of all the athletes and the different competitions that take place. They all train for years upon years putting in hours everyday for one big moment in their lives. It takes heart and dedication to want to keep at it day in and day out. I’m sure there are days when they feel like quitting or giving up but they keep at it. We all should have this mentality when doing things day in and day out. When at work there are times when I feel like quitting or maybe just cutting some corners but I keep at it. This verse from Colossians helps me keep at it even on the toughest days.
“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,”
- Colossians 3:23 NKJV
Check out “Olympic Fanfare” conducted by John Williams.
God Bless
When you are working how do you view your job? For me I have times where I feel like taking my time and not pushing myself while other times I have a bug up my butt and I’m busting though my work really fast. Thoughts of cutting corners go through my head but a voice inside of me always makes sure that I do my job the correct way because it’s the right thing to do.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
- Colossians 3:23-24 NIV
When you are doing anything, whether it’s for a job or volunteering, always work as if your working for God. When you are like me and start disliking your job or you want to cut corners remember that even though it may seem like you are working for a boss you are ultimately working for the Lord. Also being Christians we are representing God. You may not notice it or think it but people are watching and probably judging you and also God with how you handle your self and quality of work you put into your job. When I get those feelings of needing to do the right thing instead of cutting corners I believe it’s the Holy Spirit helping me to make right choices. I pray that you too can make right choices and set an example for others.
God Bless
Branches MN 