Your Daily Crossroad
Your Gifts From Christ
For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith. (Romans 12:4-6)
Ever find yourself looking around at what others are doing and what you are not?
I fall into this trap often, of looking at another and thinking to myself, “I have to be more like her!” I then begin this battle in my mind of beating myself up because I’m not doing what they are doing, or at least not doing things the way they are doing them. After this battle, depression will set in and confusion.
I cry out to the Lord and He just shakes His head at me tenderly, “Daughter, you are not her and I didn’t give you her gifts. I gave you the gifts I wanted to give you.” Clarity and today’s scripture comes rushing back to me.
How can we get upset over a brother/sister who is using the gift that God gave them?
Just use your gift and as I like to say, “Run your race and stay in your lane”. Don’t worry about how another is using her gift; just use the gifts God has given you the way God wants you to use them. He’s proud of you!
Who cares what others think? Get out of the people pleasing mindset – it only leads to frustration and confusion. You answer to only One.
Father, close our ears to the lies of the enemy who tries to trap us with comparison. Let us look to Jesus only and run the race He has given us to run, in Jesus mighty name. Amen.
I was so blessed by this when I read it. I felt someone needed to read it for themselves and be blessed. Today I choose to run my race and stay in my lane. I will look to Jesus only and run the race He has given me to run. So often I am guilty of comparison when in reality what truly matters is how I’m using the gifts God has given me. I am blessed! Let’s start our week off by running our race in our own lane and being grateful for every gift God has placed in our lives, not looking to the left nor to the right.
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is Romans 12:4-6
Don’t Fall
Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:12-13)
I went ice skating the other day. I realized the longer I was on the ice, the more grooves were put in the ice, which made it more difficult. Then, even though you are supposed to skate in a counterclockwise direction, little kids don’t follow that rule. They zigzag all over the place. Moms with very small children, who should have been skating near the wall, would skate right down the middle, constantly stopping. There was lots of falling taking place and hotshots zooming around everyone, and all I could think was today’s bible verse.
A picture of life. Just when you get going and used to the ice, there’s deep ruts that knock you off balance, and the enemy zooming at you from all directions, trying to cause you to fall.
King David said the same thing, “I said, I will take heed to my ways.” Are you aware of the path you are on and taking heed to not fall? Cleanse everything from your life that offends God. TAKE HEED LEST YOU FALL! Are you staying in prayer and in His presence? Is the Word of God hidden in your heart? Are you mindful of the enemy’s devices? You can’t live in La La Land and ignore your spiritual walk and still expect to stay upright on the ice.
Guard your path. Guard your steps. Take heed to the ways of the enemy and you will STAND in Jesus’ name!
When I read this I instantly thought, there is no mountain to high, no valley to low and no river to wide that God can’t reach you. Take time today and do a clean sweep of all the things that offend God and stand in Jesus name!! If you call on God, He will be there beside you to catch you if you fall and help you back up. Trust Him and be obedient.
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is 1 Corinthians 10:12-13
Small Fires
Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! (James 3:5)
It was a Sunday night in September and most people were sleeping when a small fire broke out in Thomas Farriner’s bakery on Pudding Lane. Soon the flames spread from house to house and London was engulfed in the Great Fire of 1666. Over 70,000 people were left homeless by the blaze that leveled four-fifths of the city. So much destruction from such a small fire!
The Bible warns us of another small but destructive fire. James was concerned about lives and relationships, not buildings, when he wrote, “Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth” (James 3:5).
But our words can also be constructive. Proverbs 16:24 reminds us, “Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.” The apostle Paul says, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man” (Col. 4:6). As salt flavors our food, grace flavors our words for building up others.
Through the help of the Holy Spirit our words can encourage people who are hurting, who want to grow in their faith, or who need to come to the Savior. Our words can put out fires instead of starting them.
Lord, I can always use help with the way I talk. For this day, help me to speak words of hope and encouragement to build up others. Amen.
I recently read this and wow what truth! Food for thought. What will our words be like today? You have the power in your tongue to build up or tear down. Which will you choose? Your words matter, choose them carefully. Use me Holy Spirit today to put out fires instead of starting them.
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is James 3:3-12
The Fondness of Fellowship
So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us. (1 Thessalonians 2:8)
There’s a very good reason we refer to other Christians as brothers and sisters. The kinship we experience with our fellow heirs in Christ is more deeply rooted than any physical bloodline or familial tie.
When God saves an individual, He literally exchanges their dead “heart of stone” for a living “heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 11:19). With this exchange comes transformation! Our greatest desires begin to conform to God’s desires, and ultimately, we want God’s will more than anything else. This change occurs at the core of who we are; it’s a central shift in identity.
Our newfound identity rests in what Jesus has accomplished and won, in His victory, not in any of our own. We delight in worshipping Jesus in all that we do, and we aspire to walk as He walked.
While we will never be perfect on this earth we still share that foundational unity with other believers that is only found in Christ. When you gather with your brothers and sisters, dwell upon the things of life with them, and reflect upon how God’s truth and reality can be witnessed everyday. These times of fellowship are sweet and encouraging, so much so, that it is very easy to understand how Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy had become so “affectionately desirous” of the Thessalonians.
Our Christian brothers and sisters should also become “very dear to us”. This week, make time for prayer and fellowship with other Christians, you will savor and grow from these times together.
When I read this it blessed me, I thought about all the precious brothers and sisters in Christ that have impacted my life and it is a joy to be in there lives. Don’t allow the enemy to sew seeds of bitterness, hate and or jealousy towards your brothers or sisters in Christ. It is a gift from God that shouldn’t be taken lightly and the enemy would love nothing more than to sew division. When you see them struggling, prop them up on there leaning side. Be to your brothers and sisters in Christ as Aaron and Hur were to Moses, what genuine love.
Have a wonderful day in The Lord!
Today’s Reading is Ephesians 4