EquipU Online Library

“As the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men” (Ephesians 6:6–7).

Kara walked quickly down the church hallway. She was late for orchestra practice. When she reached the auditorium, she searched the chairs for her usual empty spot. To her surprise, it was filled by her friend Melanie. Kara stalked up the stairs and stood in front of her chair. Melanie stopped practicing and looked up.

“Oh hi, Kara. Pastor Fox just moved me up here this morning,” she explained.

“Okay. Did he say why? This has always been my spot.”

“Not really, but it’s not a big deal. I mean, if you need to sit here, I can just move back,” Melanie offered.

Kara gave a plastic smile. “It’s fine. I’ll just move somewhere else.” She found an empty stand at the back of the first violins and flopped down.

After a couple of minutes, Pastor Fox came in. As he passed Kara’s chair, he stopped and said, “By the way, Kara, I moved you because I thought it’d be nice to give Melanie a chance to sit in the front. You don’t mind, do you?”

“No—it’s fine,” she said sourly. They began practicing the Sunday offertory, but Kara’s heart wasn’t in the music. All she could think about was the injustice of her new seat. It’s not fair. I’m so much better than Melanie, she thought.

After practice, she made a beeline for the door but was stopped by Pastor Fox. “Kara, can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Uh, sure,” she swallowed.

“I noticed you didn’t seem very happy about your new seat. Maybe Melanie isn’t as good a musician as you, but this is a leadership opportunity for her. I want you to really think about why you play in the orchestra. Are you doing it for God, or for yourself?”

Kara thought a minute, then said, “I guess, myself.”

God wants us to serve Him because we love Him. When we do something to be recognized by other people or to make ourselves feel good, we are being selfish in our ministry.

We glorify God when our motivation is to honor Him.

My response:

» What is my attitude when others get attention that I don’t get? What does this show about me?

» What’s my reason for ministry—do I do it for God or for myself?

One of the saddest verses in the Bible is Genesis 6:6. It says, “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” Our God, Who had seen “everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” had decided that because of people’s sinfulness, He could no longer look upon His creation. He decided it was better to destroy everything.

But God did not want to destroy Noah and his family. Instead He told Noah what He was going to do—bring a flood of waters upon the earth so that everything would die—and what Noah must do to save himself and his family. Noah was to make an ark.

Noah had a very big responsibility. He listened, obeyed, and began a job that seemed absolutely ridiculous to those around him. Yet Noah did just as God had said.

God is looking for those who are willing to serve Him, who will work even though others may criticize them. He is looking for those who will complete a task He has told them to do.

God wants the people who worship Him to serve and obey Him.

My response:

» Am I obedient like Noah?

» Can God depend on me?

» Do I listen, obey, and do the job God wants me to do, like obeying my parents or studying the Bible?

“In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul” (Psalm 94:19).

How many thoughts go through your mind in a single day? Would you like to take a guess? Hundreds? Thousands? It is estimated that the average person has around fifty thousand thoughts in one single day! That means you think about thirty-five thoughts per minute. Wow! That’s a lot of brain power. What kind of things do you think about during the day? You likely have thoughts about school, family, friends, chores, entertainment, what’s for dinner; the list goes on and on.

Out of all of the things that you think about in a day’s time, how often do thoughts of God cross your mind? If you could somehow track how often you think about God or His Word, you would find that the number of thoughts you have about God are not very many compared to fifty thousand thoughts per day!

The writer of Psalm 94 realized that out of all of the thoughts that went through his mind in a single day, his thoughts of God were of greatest comfort to him. We all go through times when we need comforting. Maybe you are facing sickness or are nervous about the big math test next week; or maybe you have experienced the death of someone close to you. No matter what the reason, God is always there to comfort you, but you have to practice thinking about Him and what you know to be true about God from His Word, the Bible! The more you practice this type of thinking, and the more you read Gods’ Word, the more often you will find that God helps to comfort you in your time of need.

Thinking about God and His Word can comfort us.

My response:

» Am I turning to God for comfort by thinking about Him?

» Am I spending more time in God’s Word so I know Him better?

“And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed” (Deuteronomy 31:8).

Can you tell the future? Do you know for sure what will happen tomorrow? Planning for the future is something everyone does, but sometimes things don’t go the way we planned! When we think about tomorrow, we might grow excited thinking about something fun we have planned, or maybe we aren’t looking forward to tomorrow because something hard is in the future.

Deuteronomy 31:8 was spoken by Moses. When Moses was 120 years old, it was time for him to hand over the leadership of the Israelites to Joshua. Moses knew there would probably be some tough times ahead for Joshua, so he spoke these words to him to encourage him.

What does Deuteronomy 31:8 promise about God?

First, God goes ahead of us. “And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee.” God is our great leader, and because He knows everything, He can go before us into those scary and unknown times of our lives. We are safe in His care, and He is always with us.

Second, God will not fail us. “He will not fail thee.” God always keeps His promises and it is impossible for Him to fail.  As humans, we may make wrong choices, but God will always choose the very best for us because He is always working for our good.

Third, God will never leave us. “Neither [will He] forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.” What a great comfort this is. There may be trials ahead when we face scary times and feel all alone! We may feel discouraged, as if things will never be right again. But Deuteronomy 31:8 promises that God will not leave us, no matter how hard things get.

As you look ahead at the coming days or weeks, maybe you are dreading something unpleasant or scary. I’m sure that Joshua was afraid when he thought about having to lead the Israelites without Moses there to give him advice. Like Joshua, you can remember the promise of God spoken by Moses.

You may be unsure of what is ahead, but God goes before you. You may not think you can do it, but God promises that He will never ever fail you. You may feel all alone, but God promises He will never leave you. Just as He was with Moses and Joshua, He will be with you. So remember this great promise from God’s Word as you face the days ahead. With God’s help, nothing is impossible!

God goes with me through hard times.

My response:

» When I am afraid of the future, do I remind myself that God promises to go before me and to be with me?

“Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah . . . saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me” (Jonah 1:1–2).

Tony lived in the neighborhood where I grew up. The thing is, Tony was hard to like. It’s not that he was always mean; it’s just that most of the time he bullied everyone else. He always had to be quarterback when we played football. He said mean things to everyone and didn’t care who he hurt. He demanded his way about everything. Did I mention he was hard to like?

That’s how Jonah felt about the people of Nineveh when God told him to take a message to them. Jonah knew something was up when God called Nineveh a “great city.” He knew God cared about the people there and would show mercy to them, so Jonah made other plans.

He headed in the opposite direction, boarded a ship, ran into a storm, and was thrown overboard. But God’s love was more powerful than Jonah’s disobedience. God cared so much about the people of Nineveh that He prepared a great fish to keep Jonah from drowning and to carry him back to land. Jonah shared God’s message with the people of Nineveh. They were sorry for their sin, and God forgave them.

Some people are hard to like, but I have to remember that God loves them too. Jesus tells me to “love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). Do I love those that are hard to love?

God loves those who are hard to love.

My response:

» How often do I think about the truth that God loves me even though I am hard to love?

» How can I share God’s message of love with someone who is hard to like?