Through Faith and
Patience
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
…imitate those who through faith and
patience inherit what has been promised.
Hebrews 6:12, NIV.
TODAY’S WORD
In our culture today, people are used
to getting things right away. We’ve been programmed for immediacy. People don’t
like to wait. But the scripture says, “It’s through faith and patience that we
inherit God’s promises.” Sometimes, it’s easy for people to have faith. We
declare, “God, I believe I’m going to accomplish my dreams. God, I believe I’m
going to overcome this obstacle.” But, it gets harder when we have to walk in
patience. When you pray, can you say, “God, I not only believe for big things,
but I trust Your timing. God, I’m not going to get discouraged if it doesn’t
happen immediately. I’m not going to give up because it’s taken a week, a month
or five years. I know the set time is already in my future, so I’m going to
wait with faith and patience because I know that it’s on the way.”
Remember, through faith and patience
we inherit His promises. Trust His Word, trust His timing and trust that your
answer is on its way!
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father, today I declare that I trust
You. I trust Your faithfulness. I trust Your goodness. I know that You are
working things out in my favor and in Your timing. I declare that through faith
and patience I will inherit every promise You have for me in Jesus’ Name. Amen!
***
5 hours ago
“How wonderful it is, how pleasant, for God's people to live together in harmony!” (Psalm 133:1 TEV)
God intends for us to experience life together. The Bible calls this shared experience fellowship.
Today, however, the word has lost most of its biblical meaning. “Fellowship” now usually refers to casual conversation, socializing, food, and fun.
The question, “Where do you fellowship?” means, “Where do you attend church?” “Stay after for fellowship” usually means, “Wait for refreshments.”
Real fellowship is so much more than just showing up at services. It is experiencing life together. It includes unselfish loving, honest sharing, practical serving, sacrificial giving, sympathetic comforting, and all the other “one another” commands found in the New Testament.
When it comes to fellowship, size matters: Smaller is better. You can worship with a crowd, but you can’t fellowship with one.
Once a group becomes larger than about 10 people, someone stops participating — usually the quietest person — and a few people will dominate the group.
Jesus ministered in the context of a small group of disciples. He could have chosen more, but he knew 12 is about the maximum size you can have in a small group if everyone is to participate.
The Body of Christ, like your own body, is really a collection of many small cells. The life of the Body of Christ, like your body, is contained in the cells.
For this reason, every Christian needs to be involved in a small group within their church, whether it is a home fellowship group, a Sunday school class, or a Bible study. This is where real community takes place, not in the big gatherings.
If you think of your church as a ship, the small groups are the lifeboats attached to it. God has made an incredible promise about small groups of believers: “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst” (Matthew 18:20 NASB).
Talk About It
Do a frank assessment of your small group, and ask these questions:
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