As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace[.]

1 Peter 4

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace[.] 1 Peter 4:10

I continue my study looking at the life of Paul using John Piper's 30 Reasons Why I Love the Apostle Paul.  Today, I move to chapter eleven - Rigorous in Reasoning, Transparent in Feeling.  Here, John Pipers shares his love for Paul based on Paul's combination of strengths to both reason (and articulate his reason both in written and spoken mediums), and to be in firm grasp of his own emotions which he is able to harness to empathize with others and win their hearts. Piper first starts by describing how others viewed Paul's intellect, first by pointing to Roman Governor Festus (Acts 26:24), then to Peter (2 Peter 3:16). Piper then shares scripture where Paul encourages all believers to think for themselves (1 Corinthians 10:15, 14:20, 2 Timothy 2:7).  He continues by moving to Paul's emotional maturity, describing both his own emotions and challenges as well as his profound sense of care for others (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8, Philippians 1:8, 4:1, Philemon 1:12, 2 Corinthians 6:11-13).  While this is a rare combination of strengths for anyone to possess, we are encouraged to develop these capabilities as God gives them to us, and use them in His service.

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God and You have blessed me through others - through Paul's writings, and the love and care of others working in Your service.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such love, care, and blessing.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Proverbs 10-16

The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. Proverbs 13:4

Today, I return to my study of Proverbs - moving to chapters 10-16.  Here, the first four questions for this week (week 6) from my study workbook focus on the relationship between wisdom and wealth (see Proverbs 10:1-5 and 11:28), lying and hatred (see Proverbs 10:18 and 26:28), the pitfalls of the pursuit of individual or corporate autonomy (from the Lord) (see Proverbs 12:15), and how our diligence in work (using our God-given skills/gifts) supports the work of the gospel (see Proverbs 13:4). In particular, I am working hard to ensure my 19-year old son Zach understands this last one...

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for the gifts You give me, including my ability to work - what a blessing.  It is my prayer and hope that I use these to forward the gospel by supporting my church and global/local ministries that take the Word into the world as You command it in the Great Commission.  I know I can do better by being a better worker and a better steward of what You give me to use for Your glory.  Thank You for the blessings but I am not deserving - my sin continues.  Please forgive me for my daily sin and for missing out on those opportunities to be who You intend for me.  Help me turn from my sin and overcome and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

[T]hus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel[.]

In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand.” Romans 15:17-21

As I wrapped my study of Romans, one particular verse (v15:20) from Romans sticks with me and my commentary that I used referred to Paul's ambition as a "holy ambition."  We are all urged to have a holy ambition like Paul's, and so I now move on to John Piper's book Holy Ambition.  This afternoon, my focus is on the Introduction - pages 11-19. 

Piper states that the holy ambition from Romans 15:20 have three direct implications for our lives (as believers):

1. that we all have a holy ambition
2. that we see an immeasurable need (for the gospel)
   
3. that we (corporately and/or individually) have a global strategy to meet the immeasurable need 

Piper goes on to state that each of us should have a holy ambition but that not everyone should have Paul's holy ambition as each has its own gifting. He writes that our holy ambition "comes from a personal encounter with the living Christ (not necessarily as dramatic as the Damascus road), shaped and informed and empowered by the written word of God."

If we don't feel like we have a holy ambition, Piper suggests that we "saturate" ourselves "with the word of God and ask him for it."

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has grown in my heart and life and I feel filled!  Thank You Jesus!  Yet I am undeserving of how You bless me in so many ways.  I have sin of anger, worry, etc. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today an every day.

As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.

  2 Kings 2, 4, 6, 8 

As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you. 2 Kings 2:2, 4, 6

Day 157 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues with a study of Elisha the prophet as Elijah goes up into Heaven. 

A couple of things strike me today:

(a) we need others who will encourage and call us to be who God intends us to be - Elijah took Elisha under his wing and Elisha became Elijah's protege.  The two became inseparable - in 2 Kings 2 Elisha refuses to leave Elijah's side and on three occasions remarks "As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you". Elijah is being called to Jericho and other places prior to calling him home to Heaven, but Elisha will not leave Elijah's side. This relationship leaves a mark and prior to Elijah being called home to Heaven, Elisha asks Elijah to "inherit a double portion of [Elijah's] spirit". Elijah responds to Elisha that this can happen based on certain conditions that ultimately do come to pass.  Elisha goes on to perform miracles described in my commentary* that are "similar in nature... [not just to Elijah but also to] those performed by the Messiah to come".

*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) . Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition. 

(b) a review of Elijah's life based on this post from DesiringGod.com indicates that Elijah had an "effective prayer life" and God used him during a period of great spiritual crisis among the Jewish people to rise him up from obscurity to confront apostasy.  The post refers to Elijah as a mega-prophet but encourages us to have confidence that we can live with faith as Elijah does - he is just as ordinary as we are.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has placed men in my life that have called me up and encouraged me - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such love and blessings.  I sin...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

I went past the field of a sluggard, past the vineyard of someone who has no sense; thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.

Various Proverbs 

I went past the field of a sluggard, past the vineyard of someone who has no sense; thorns had come up everywhere, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man. Proverbs 24:30-34

Day 141 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues with a study of the Proverbs - primarily of Solomon, but including the Proverbs of other authors as well. This morning my focus includes proverbs that cover economic well-being (wealth and poverty, benevolence and generosity, oppression of the poor, industriousness, conservation, and surety for another).

My parents owned a small-business and I experienced first hand their hard work and work ethic - which they passed down to me.  I am grateful that they did.  Now that I am a father, I am trying to pass on the same lessons to my own kids.

Proverbs 24:30-34 helps me stay focused on this lesson.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has blessed me beyond what I deserve - thank You Jesus!  I know that I am not deserving...primarily because I sin...daily, including my neglect of my most important relationship - You!  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.