Responsible eating is a good indicator of responsible living. When you show discipline around the dinner table you tend to exercise discipline in other areas of life. It’s when we drift into indulging our appetite that we harm our bodies. As a whole, portions pleasing to the palate need to decrease as our age increases. Responsible eating means we enjoy a delicious meal without gorging ourselves into gluttony.

Convenience to good food can lead to cravings that spin out of control. Abundance of delicious meals makes us all overweight without moderate intake and exercise. It is entertaining and relationally fulfilling to enjoy a nice meal with friends and family, but wisdom adds temperance and moderation. An undisciplined appetite is destructive and unacceptable to the Lord, “Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things” (Philippians 3:19).

How can I in good conscience experience excessive eating when most of the world goes to bed hungry? There is a stewardship of food intake that protects my body from excessive weight and invites undernourished bodies to gain weight. How much I eat matters to my health and to the health of others. So with holy contempt we keep from wasting food while others waste away. We eat less so others can eat more.

Therefore, enjoy the blessing of delicious meals with responsible eating. Dine with an eye on healthy food but in smaller portions. Plan menus so you eat food with forethought and you avoid frequenting fast food establishments. Your body will thank you for making food your friend and not your enemy. Do I eat responsibly? Am I careful to limit my cravings for food? Eating is a spiritual transaction and the fruit of the Spirit is “self control” (Galatians 5:23).

Related Readings: Deuteronomy 21:20; Proverbs 25:16; 1 Corinthians 9:25-27; 2 Peter 1:6

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

Are you developing you God-given gifts? Are you sharpening your skills as a responsible steward? You have everything you need to become what Christ intends for your life, but it requires growth and development. Sad are people who sit satisfied at their current level of competency. Only those who stretch themselves and continue to advance experience God’s best. Why only reminisce over past blessings when you can attain new milestones?

Influencers want to be around fresh thinkers who are constantly growing in their character. Smart leaders surround themselves with other servant leaders who never stop learning. Perhaps you take the time to sharpen your skills and thus create value that is attractive to those in authority. It could be a continuing education class in computers, a master’s level course in business or an in depth Bible study. Skills need development.

Remember, the Lord gives you wisdom to use your skills in strategic service, “Tell all the skilled men to whom I have given wisdom in such matters…” (Exodus 28:2). Ask Him where to invest your attributes and aptitudes for the highest Kingdom impact. Don’t remain in mediocrity when you can be a man or woman of excellence who serves an incredibly influential visionary leader. Consider leaving your comfortable place of employment for a challenging assignment with Christ. Like exercised muscles, skills need to be stretched by faith. God’s will advances on the tension of trust and obedience.

Skilled servants of the Lord have a lasting impact on a hurting world. So, use this window of opportunity to invest your time with integrity and the absence of ego. Be content behind the scenes knowing the investment of your expert advice is influencing the decision-maker. An ingenious industrious person exercises influence with influencers. What significant leader can I leverage the skills given me by my Lord in this season of service? “Huram was highly skilled and experienced in all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all the work assigned to him” (1 Kings 7:14).

Related Readings: Genesis 41:40-46; 1 Kings 11:28; Psalm 45:1; Matthew 25:21-23

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

Years can bring improvement in decision-making, perspective, understanding of people and our intimacy with God and those closest to us. The elderly represent a plethora of wisdom waiting to be tapped. They tell stories of real life events that challenge, educate and entertain. Those approaching their twilight years, who love Jesus, have an eternal perspective that is infectious. They see God for who He is.

Yet with all of these potential positive traits, we stutter at spending time with the aged, even those who are our own flesh and blood. Why is this so? Yes, some are hard to get along with; others reek of body staleness (having been trapped indoors), and others are very high maintenance. This is hard, yet it is temporary. Before you know it they will be gone. How many more days do you have with a parent, grandparent or mentor?

As the sand is rushing toward the bottom of the hour-glass, what are some ways you can demonstrate respect toward the elderly? One way is to spend time with them. Perhaps it is a regular visit to the nursing home or retirement center. Love on them by showing up with flowers and by reading an uplifting portion of Scripture. Listen to their hopes, dreams and regrets. Throughout your conversation with the elderly capture in your memory the nuggets of wisdom, thoughts, ideas and places that resonate with how you want to live your life or not want to live your life. Look for those life snapshots that you can emulate and pass down to your children and children’s children.

Or, respect for your elders may express itself in them visiting you, rather than you visiting them. They may need to move in with you so you can love on them 24/7. Yes, this is a huge commitment. It is harder to ‘raise’ your parents that it is to ‘raise’ your children. Their needs are more complicated and they certainly do not want to be told what to do, but you love them anyway.

You respect them, even when they are not respectable. Seize this time. Don’t let it slip by in the abyss of busyness. It is an opportunity for your kids to experience how you would like for them to treat you one day. Your respect for the elderly is a reflection of your reverence for God. Love, serve and respect them as if you were doing the same for Christ. How can I schedule regular time to learn from and love on the elderly?

Related Readings: Job 32:4-6; Proverbs 16:31; Romans 13:7; 1 Timothy 5:1-2

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

Courage is risky because it can be misunderstood and even rejected. The majority may dismiss your courage as unreasonable. You will not always have the majority on your side in decision-making. This is a risk you may need to take. Just make sure it is the Lord leading you and not your stubborn pride. Fearful people sometimes reject courageous people because the pain of what ‘could’ happen, out weights their present pain.

What about the pain that will occur if you do nothing and disobey God? This consequence can be dreadfully painful. Yet many times this is over looked and then negative consequences occur and blame is placed on you. Look at it this way, in either case — the courageous choice or the do nothing choice– you will be given credit or blame. Thus be guilty of the courageous choice and trust God with the outcomes.

Courageous leaders have the ability to see the opportunities rather than the obstacles. Yes the obstacles will still be there, but over time will fade away into oblivion. As the old farmer once said about a large dead tree trunk in his field… ‘You can dynamite it out and make a mess, or you can plow around it. If you plow around it over time it will decay and return to where it came from.’ This is true of obstacles. Focus on your God given opportunities, ignore the obstacles, and eventually the obstacles will decay for lack of attention.

Embrace and exploit your opportunities and you will not have time to be distracted by the obstacles. The majority may be enamored and even paralyzed by the obstacles, but stay focused on the God given goal and He will overcome. Yes, courage and faith are first cousins. You need both, but fear is an evil uncle trying to distract you. Be courageous. God only gives you one life to live. Live it faithfully and aggressively for His glory.

Remember to draw your courage from the courageous one, the Lord Jesus Christ. His courage in you will conquer way beyond your ability to persevere. His daily infusion of courage through the Holy Spirit will defeat Satan’s daily distractions of fear and blame. Courage moves forward, fear sit’s still. Courage is risky, but ever so fulfilling. “Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them” (Joshua 1:6). Where is Christ leading me to be courageous?

Related Readings: Joshua 10:25; Ezra 10:4; Mark 6:51; Acts 4:13

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

Humility is attractive because it accepts others. You feel valued and important when you are in the presence of humility. The humble person is not pressing their agenda; rather they are listening for your needs, dreams and fears. Humility is other centric. It is also in a position to trust in God. You tend to trust someone who trusts God. They depend on their Heavenly Father, because they recognize their limitations without Him.

Humility also solicits followers. People want to follow a person of humility. They respect the honesty that travels with humility. This is vital to effective leadership. People will go the extra mile for a honest and humble leader. They serve with passion because they feel they are served and cared for by their humble leader. However, humility not only attracts positive reactions, but negative ones as well.

Critics can hound the humble. Some critics view the humble one as weak, and therefore their humility is a target for criticism. Their strategy is to wear down the humble one and force him or her to capitulate to the critic’s claims. However, the critic may underestimate the resolve of the humble. A humble person, submitted to the will of God, will not wither under the critic’s verbal firestorm. When there is a conflict between pleasing God or pleasing people, Christ is the choice.

There is a deep reservoir of stamina within the heart and mind of the humble to do what is right and trust God with the results. Overtime the humble person will learn from his critics and become better because of them, but he will not compromise his core values and principles. Ultimately, the goal is to humbly love God and people. This is attractive. “He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8). Do I walk humbly with the Lord my God? Are others attracted to humility in me?

Related Readings: Deuteronomy 33:1; Matthew 5:5; Acts 7:22; 2 Corinthians 10:1

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

Aaron just lost two of his four sons because of their unwise decisions to disobey God. The emotions in Aaron’s heart must have been racing. Just before the death of his sons, Aaron had experienced the ultimate in ecstasy by luxuriating in the glory of the Lord with his best friend, family and friends. He went from the mountaintop of celebration to the valley of death. He knew to speak in his state of emotion was risky and unwise.

As anger and humiliation boils, our words become ripe to lash out at God and others. It is wise to refrain in the face of raw emotion. There are times to not speak our mind, and not spew our unguarded words and embarrass ourselves. Instead, by God’s grace, we can remain quiet, cool and contemplative. Smart silence sends a message of maturity. It is golden to God.

It is hard to remain silent when we feel hurt or disappointed. It is hard to harness our tongue when we see our children hurting and we feel incapacitated to help. In is hard to keep quiet and pray when we feel the Lord has let us down. Like an IV in a fevered patient, smart silence requires extra doses of God’s grace flooding our lives. His grace refrains us from speaking until a better time and a better day.

There are times to speak up in the heat of the emotion, but those situations are the exception. In most cases, take a deep breath, send up a prayer to your Heavenly Father and wait before you speak. Wait until you are calm and wait for others to cool down. At the appropriate time, make sure your words are birthed from a pure and prayerful heart. Silence is smart because it allows the Lord to soothe your soul. “But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me” (Psalm 131:4). With what relationship do I need to trust God and be silent?

Related Readings: Psalm 4:4; Isaiah 42:14; Mark 14:61; Acts 8:32

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

We live in an instant society. We want relationships, money and our eating experiences in an instant. In the process of making everything instantaneous we have lost something. We have lost an appreciation for thoroughness in our work and in our relationships. We take short cuts to finish on time and we sacrifice quality just to end up with an inferior outcome. Or even worse, we misrepresent the facts or out right lie to reach a goal because of the pressure we feel to produce. Thoroughness requires attention, trust and tenacity.

Whatever happened to thoroughness? The disciplines to plan ahead, provide accountability, cover the details, create a beautiful result and celebrate the success. Instead we plow ahead without proper understanding and procedures. Everyone does ‘what is right in his own eyes’ and we miss the opportunity to learn and benefit from one another. Indeed, thoroughness begins with a good example from the leader.

Moses was a thorough leader. He listened patiently to God and then delivered in detail to the team what was expected and required to accomplish the project. He understood and applied wise management of people. He understood each of their individual gifts and skills. People who take pride in their work are the most thorough when they’re competent in their area of responsibility and clear as to what’s expected. They understand what’s needed and when it is to be complete. Details and deadlines are friends of thoroughness.

Lastly, thoroughness is dependent on the needed resources and relationships to carry out the project. Don’t be afraid to be resourceful, seek out the people and information needed to carry out your job. Your thoroughness will speak volumes to your boss and to your peers. Your thorough and excellent work is the best testament to your trust in Christ. In the end you are blessed, because of the quality product or service you created. God is glorified through thoroughness and your work experiences enduring influence. What current project requires my thorough attention to detailed implementation?

Related Readings: Genesis 7:5; Exodus 23:21-22; Matthew 28:20; 2 Timothy 2:15

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

The independence of a nation erodes under the heavy load of debt. Just like with personal debt, nations in debt become a servant to their lender. “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). What happens when the lending nation becomes hostile, demanding and controlling? It is perilous for a group of good people to become dependent on bad people who want to bring them down.

Where is our collective conscience as citizens over our government’s credit abuse? Will we remain passive and silent as the future of our children is mortgaged overseas? We can continue to ignore the downsides of our national debt and spend it all on ourselves, but one day someone has to pay. Debt does no go away, it just entrenches its influence. Printing more money only compounds and extends the problem. Debt needs to die.

So there is a solution. It starts by individuals living within their means. We can eradicate our personal debt, and demand the same of politicians and preachers. Authentic independence is achieved in households and halls of government by keeping a tight rein on debt. We do not spend our way out of a financial fiasco; we refrain from irrational expenditures and we only spend what we can afford. Wisdom stops spending selfishly.

The Lord’s command is to be a lender and not a borrower. The nation who lends has the leverage of influence, control and economic benefit. Authentic independence is achieved by being on the lending side of the debt equation. Pride spends like a drunken sailor with no thought of tomorrow. However, humility saves today and pays off debt to obtain a safe and secure future. How can I be a wise citizen who manages money responsibly? “You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men” (1 Corinthians 7:23).

Related Readings: Deuteronomy 28:15, 43-45; Proverbs 3:27-28; Romans 13:8

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

God blesses a country that honors Him, but He brings down a country that dishonors Him. It honors Him for His people to pray in earnest for righteousness to reign in religion, the work place, seats of government and the home. It dishonors the Lord when we behave like His commands are suggestions and we marginalize His mandates. Countries founded on Christ are blessed if they continue with Christ.

Where is our Christ conscientiousness? Do our actions reflect accountability to Almighty God and His ultimate judgment? Faith without the fear of God is weak and anemic in the face of moral relativism, academic attacks and the indulgences of affluence. A nation who fears the Lord, fears sin and its deadly consequences. Thus, Christians are called by Christ to engage in their communities with compassion and with a standard of right and wrong.

The law of the Lord is the basis of the law of the land in a country that honors Christ. The Bible is clear, “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous” (Romans 2:12-13). God blesses a nation who obeys His laws.

Therefore, for our children’s sake, let raise our standards of acceptable actions for preachers, politicians and parents. Let’s return to public prayers of dependence on the Lord and private prayers of repentance from sin. Without God’s blessing a country creeps into moral chaos, an economic meltdown and institutional irrelevance. But, with God’s blessing a country thrives on trust in Him. We desperately need to stay bless-able before the Lord.

Am I a citizen who unashamedly represents Christ in my community? Do I pray with persistence and humility for repentance among God’s people? “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Related Readings: Exodus 19:5-6; Psalm 144:15; Romans 12:14-15; 1 Peter 2:9

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?

What’s behind a short-fused temper? Why do some people fly off in a rage for ridiculous reasons? Anger is insidious when it’s instigated by the trivial, and it transgresses against the Lord for lack of trust. It is hideous because it brings out the worst in everyone in its path. Anger comes from angst in the soul. It is the expression of a faith-starved heart. Mistreatment, abandonment, rejection and loss all contribute to anger. Anger is ugly.

Because anger is unappealing it is wise to avoid the angry, lest you become like them. There is no worse feeling than being trapped in the downward spiral of fury and rage. Anger is an annoyance that no one wants to be around. It is unattractive, unprofitable and immature. Resentful people are unable to get their concerns off themselves and on to others. They are sucked into a cycle of self-pity and self-indulgence. Indeed, service is their secret to freedom.

Perhaps you start by not being intimidated by the angry. Do not fear the fury of the unfaithful. Moses learned this lesson, “By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27). Begin by faith to put this irritating individual in God’s hands. He can handle them. Do not try to change the angry for they will only increase in anger. Instead intercede to Christ on their behalf for His patience and forgiveness to fill their soul. Angry hearts can only be healed by grace.

If anger controls your actions, repent and ask Jesus to set you free. A disposition of anger is not a badge of honor, but a veil of unresolved sin. So let the Lord love on you and draw you unto His mercy. The Lord loves you and forgives you. He understands the proper use of anger. Ask Christ to channel your energy into eternal initiatives like building a church, feeding the poor and serving your family. Be an activist for Almighty God.

Passion prompted by the Holy Spirit is a mighty weapon in the hands of heaven. Where can I channel my energies for Christ? Who do I need to avoid because of their angry outbursts, and destructive behavior? “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19b-20).

Related Readings: Proverbs 29:22; Jonah 4:1-9; Ephesians 4:26-31; 1 Timothy 2:8

Transformational Living

What did I learn from the Lord in today’s Bible reading?

How will I respond?