Do you remember who first taught you about Jesus Christ? For many of us, it was our parents, but it may also have been, Sunday School teachers, Grandparents, aunts, uncles, or possibly a caring friend.

These people didn’t have to witness and teach you, but they did this good thing out of love for God and for you.

Paul writes in Hebrews 13:7, “Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith.”

He goes on in verse 16, “And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God.”

Dear Lord, We thank you for those teachers and leaders who brought your message to us. Help us remember their example, and be the leaders and teachers of others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

We have all seen examples of the tragic early deaths of celebrities and other successful people who seemed to have everything. Solomon writes about this in Ecclesiastes 6:2, “God gives some people great wealth and honor and everything they could ever want, but then he doesn’t give them the chance to enjoy these things.”

It is not that being successful or wealthy is wrong, but as we have seen on many occasions, those things do not provide happiness.

He says in Ecclesiastes 5:19, “And it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. God keeps such people so busy enjoying life that they take no time to brood over the past.”

God has each of us where we are for a reason. Sure it would be great to have lots of money and success, but we need to trust that God has a plan for us, and enjoy what we have, while waiting, with faith, for what we would like.

Dear Lord, it is in our nature to want more, but help us enjoy our lives and trust that you love us, and have us where we are for your reasons. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Have you ever felt you loved someone so much that it was as if they were part of yourself; Your spouse, children, siblings, parents. You felt such connection with them that it seemed that you could feel what they felt, and you experienced what they were experiencing. What a powerful love this is.

John tells us in 1 John 4:19, “We love because he first loved us.”

As deeply as we may love others, God loves us. So much that he, as Jesus, endured humiliation, agony and death for us, to save us.

Paul also tells us in Romans 11:33, “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and ways!

When we experience tragedy, uncertainty, pain, loss, we may feel that God has abandoned us. He has not. Within those ways which we may not understand, is his love for us. We can trust in his plans.

James 4:8 tells us, “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.”

Dear Lord, We cannot understand your ways, but we can trust in your love for us. Comfort those in need, and give them confidence that comes from trusting you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

There is a popular business book called “One Thing” and the author’s main point is that in order to succeed we need to focus intently on one thing. If you are old enough to remember the Billy Crystal comedy movie, City Slickers, there was a tough old cowboy character, “Curly,” played by Jack Palance, who had a famous scene where he said, holding up one finger, “The secret of life was one thing…., you have to find out what that one thing is for you.”

In the account of Mary and Martha recorded in Luke 10, Jesus came to visit sisters Mary and Martha, and while Jesus was there, Martha was busy with all the activities of hosting Jesus’ visit, but Mary sat and listened to Jesus teaching. This upset Martha who told Jesus it was not fair that Martha was working hard on all the arrangements while Mary sat listening to Jesus and not helping. Jesus’ answer was, Luke 10:42,43, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

There is only one thing we also need to be concerned with, and that is following Jesus. When we keep this as our focus we stay on the right path. Following Jesus is, as he said in Matthew 22, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

Dear Lord, You have given us the incredible gift of Salvation through Jesus’ Christ. Help us remember that this is the one thing that matters most. In His name we pray. Amen.

Why is it that people like the typical characters played by John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, or in more recent movies, Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible, or Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne? I think part of the reason is their display of courage.

Courage comes down to, risking harm to your self for something more important. The harm may be pain, intimidation, insecurity, threat of death or injury, shame, or personal loss, or other risks. I think we like these characters because they display both physical courage, risking life and limb for a what is right, and moral courage, going against the crowd or the easy way in order to do the right thing.

God tells Joshua in Joshua 1:9, “be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

We need to think of ourselves like these courageous characters.
We may not face physical risks for living our faith, without apology, but we may face risks of embarrassment, intimidation or ridicule. Our faith is more important than avoiding embarrassment.

Paul writes in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes.”

Dear Lord, we know we should be courageous in living our Christian lives, without backing down from what is right in your eyes. Work in us to have this courage. In doing so, maybe we can be one of these courageous characters that leads others to you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.