Monday 10 Jun 2013

Monday Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3:1-5

Key Verse: 1 Thessalonians 3:3
3  That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto.

Devotion:
When we have worked hard at getting something just right the last thing we want is for someone or something to come in and undo or destroy all the work that we have done! I’m not talking about the pride that we have in getting something right but rather that satisfaction in knowing that what we have done is right and stands as a good example to us and for others to follow on. But just as we continue on in life and are able to get to such positions once in a while, there is going to be someone waiting to trip us up or to bring someone else in to break up what we have done – Satan is always there ready and willing to break everything we build up in Christ’s name…

I have seen it many times in working with youth; you get to the point where you have managed to get them to see what is good in life and they start out on that road. Then a few weeks or days later you see them back in the same position as they were beforehand; then you get to hear why they are there through what someone else has said. The evil one is going to use everyone and everything at his disposal to try and break down the works that we do for God because he knows that we are weak and give in to temptations – especially when we feel down or low.

It is when we feel down or low that we need to reach out to the strong people in our lives but we have to know the difference between those that are strengthened by Satan and those that are strengthened by God. Whenever we see or hear someone encouraging us to do things we need to compare them with what our bibles tell us because if we see that they are encouraging us to work against God we can be sure that they are not strengthened by God!

Nobody wants to work for nothing! I may volunteer to go above and beyond what others would volunteer for, but I do it for God and to support the few people that I see standing up with God and plainly telling the world that they stand with God! I love wearing my hoodie that says “I hang out with Jesus” because it will always cause someone to comment on it for good or bad, giving me a chance to tell people what Jesus is with me every step of the way. During our rough times we do have to be very aware of the evil one because he works quicker than we can think…

Points to Ponder:
Do you like being put down?

Do you stand up for God when others put Him down?