[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Let God tell you who you are!

‘His mother called his name Jabez.’
1 Chronicles 4:9 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 13 NOV 2019

The name Jabez means ‘pain and trouble’. Can you imagine walking into a room and hearing someone say, ‘Here comes trouble,’ or someone describing you as ‘a pain’?

And what’s more, Jabez’ mother labelled him that way the day he was born because ‘she gave birth to him in pain’. But Jabez refused to wear the label or let that name define him.

Instead of looking back at his past and listening to his critics, he turned to God and prayed: ‘“Oh, that You would bless me…and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested’ (v. 10 NKJV).

The label on the outside of a bottle tells you what’s on the inside. And when you let others label you, invariably they make your world too small.

And once you accept the label they place on you, you start to believe that’s who you are and that you’ll never amount to anything more than that. No, only God can tell you who you are!

So do what Jabez did – go directly to the source: God. He created you. He redeemed you. He calls you. He equips you. He empowers you. He rewards you.

So when people try to limit you by putting labels on you, God steps in and says, ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine’ (Isaiah 43:1 NKJV). The truth is that God loves and accepts you, and His approval trumps everybody else’s disapproval!

Ezekiel 24-26, James 2

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Say ‘God bless you!’

‘Whenever [you] bless…people…in my name, I myself will bless them.’
Numbers 6:27 NLT

The UCB Word for Today - 14 NOV 2019

God’s Word is impregnated with life, wisdom, truth, power, and potential. When He created the world, He simply said, ‘Let there be.’

Every word He speaks – contains the power to create whatever He says. Every promise He makes – contains the seeds of its own fulfilment.

Those seeds have a scheduled season for fulfilment in your life, and when they’re watered with confident, faith-filled prayer, standing squarely on the Scriptures and patiently awaiting God’s timing – His Word cannot fail. Once you grasp this truth, the words ‘God bless you’ become loaded!

Speaking them releases God’s blessing into our lives. When you say, ‘God bless you,’ God backs you up.

‘Whenever [you] bless…people…in my name, I myself will bless them.’ So if you want to bless your loved ones, speak these words of blessing to them: ‘The Lord bless you and protect you…and be gracious to you…show you his favour and give you his peace’ (vv. 24-26 NLT).

Asking someone, ‘How are you?’ is an expression of courtesy and care. And when you say, ‘Have a nice day,’ you sincerely mean it.

But when you say, ‘God bless you,’ and understand the scriptural truth behind those words, God’s blessing can change that person’s life! Author Kate Nowak says: ‘It should be a habit, this business of blessing others…I’ve come to realise it’s one of the most powerful and practical ways for reconnecting with each other, our world and life itself…the most phenomenal way possible to lead us to happiness and success.

A blessing is a sweet release from pain…an ancient key to a successful and fulfilling life.’

Ezekiel 27-29, James 3

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Giving is its own reward

‘I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you.’
2 Corinthians 12:15 NLT

The UCB Word for Today - 15 NOV 2019

The apostle Paul wrote, ‘I don’t want what you have – I want you…I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you, even though it seems that the more I love you, the less you love me’ (vv. 14-15 NLT). Paul found his greatest fulfilment in giving, not receiving.

For him, giving was its own reward. For him, being successful meant making others successful.

For him, being joyful meant bringing joy to others. That’s because he didn’t look to people for his reward, but to God: ‘Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do’ (Ephesians 6:8 NLT).

The hardest thing for most of us to do is to fight our natural tendency to put ourselves first. That’s why it’s important to continually examine your motives and make sure you’re not sliding backwards into selfishness.

If you want to check your motives, follow the example set by Benjamin Franklin. Every day he asked himself two questions. When he got up in the morning he would ask, ‘What good am I going to do today?’

And before he went to bed he would ask, ‘What good have I done today?’ If you can answer those questions with selflessness and integrity, you can keep yourself on track.

Seeing those in need, and giving to meet that need, keeps your priorities and your perspective right. It increases the quality of life for both the giver and the receiver.

The truth is, there is no life as empty as the self-centred life, and there is no life as centred as the self-empty life.

Ezekiel 30-32, James 4

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Muzzle your mouth

‘I will put a muzzle on my mouth.’
Psalm 39:1 NIV

The UCB Word for Today - 16 NOV 2019

The psalmist has a lot to say about the dangers of the tongue. Apparently he had to guard himself in that particular area.

‘Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips’ (Psalm 141:3 NIV 2011 Edition). ‘May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord’ (Psalm 19:14 NIV 2011 Edition).

Just because a thought comes up doesn’t mean it should come out! ‘A fool vents all his feelings, but a wise man holds them back’ (Proverbs 29:11 NKJV).

You say, ‘But I didn’t really mean it. I was just sounding off!’

You may not think you meant it, but the Bible says, ‘Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks’ (Matthew 12:34 NKJV). What’s harboured on the inside inevitably shows up on the outside.

Put yourself in the other person’s place, listen to what you’re saying, and ask yourself how you’d respond. When you’re talking to someone, their acceptance doesn’t come from your heightened decibel level, but from your ability to listen, understand, care, empathise, and respond with wisdom.

And if none of those things work, do what Jesus did when He stood before Pilate: ‘He opened not His mouth’ (Acts 8:32 NKJV). Amazing!

He had the power and authority to call twelve legions of angels (72,000 plus) to His defence, but He didn’t. That’s strength, not weakness!

Another word to the wise: never resort to profanity. ‘Don’t use foul or abusive language.

Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them’ (Ephesians 4:29 NLT).

Ezekiel 33-34, James 5

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Be spiritually sensitive

‘To be spiritually minded is life and peace.’
Romans 8:6 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 17 NOV 2019

Paul writes, ‘Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit’ (v. 5 NKJV). Passenger planes are designed to fly in two ways – through the skill of a pilot and the commands they receive from the control tower.

To ‘live according to the Spirit’ means obeying His promptings. You do that by going through your day with an awareness of His presence.

Submit, as you feel Him tugging at your heart to take a particular course of action, even if you don’t quite understand why. You may be prompted to drop a particular conversation, turn away quickly from a certain television programme, walk away from a questionable environment, or even go ‘by another way’.

(Remember the wise men in Matthew 2:12?) Whatever it is, do it immediately. The Holy Spirit may be warning you about a temptation you’ll be unable to resist unless you obey Him there and then.

Perhaps there’s someone who comes to your mind during the day, and you know he or she is going through a difficult time and could use some support. Get in touch with them.

God wants to minister to that person through you, and He will bless you when you do it. The Holy Spirit may guide you to do a certain thing, or take a risk you never imagined you’d take.

The wisest thing is always to submit to His plan, regardless of whether or not it makes sense to you. God knows all things, including your future, and His direction is always for your benefit.

Luke 22:1-30, Psalm 119:1-88

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Finishing strong in ministry (1)

‘I have finished the race.’
2 Timothy 4:7 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 18 NOV 2019

Did you know that over half of those who enter the ministry leave before retirement? Why?

There are lots of reasons – here is one of them: They discover that great revelation comes with a ‘thorn’. The apostle Paul, who wrote half the New Testament, says: ‘To keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.

For when I am weak, then I am strong’ (2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NIV 2011 Edition). Church leader, there are 168 hours in your week.

The hour you spend in the pulpit on Sunday morning showcases you in the areas of your gifting and strength. So your challenge will always be to remember that it is God’s Word and God’s power, not yours, that changes lives and gets the job done.

Notice what Paul said: ‘To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh.’ Paul’s thorn came in the form of ‘weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties’.

What’s your thorn? You can only stand strong before people if you discipline yourself to spend time before God in prayer and Bible study. That’s how to stay effective and finish strong in ministry!

Ezekiel 35-36, 1 Peter 1

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Finishing strong in ministry (2)

‘I face the daily pressure of my concern for all the churches.’
2 Corinthians 11:28 NIV

The UCB Word for Today - 19 NOV 2019

Let’s take another look at why over 50 per cent of church leaders leave the ministry. They love the crowd, but can’t handle the pressure.

We like to talk about the power of the New Testament church, but what about its problems? The church is made up of human beings, and human beings have unresolved issues.

The New Testament church had:
1) Moral problems. One man was sleeping with his stepmother, and nobody in the church seemed particularly upset about it (see 1 Corinthians 5:1-2).

2) Doctrinal problems. Some Jewish converts thought the Gentile converts needed to be circumcised. The dispute became so heated that it almost split the church down the middle (see Acts 15).

3) Immaturity and ‘personality-itis’ problems. Paul writes: ‘I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly – mere infants in Christ.

I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it…For since there is jealousy and quarrelling among you, are you not worldly?…when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?’ (1 Corinthians 3:1-4 NIVUK 2011 Edition).

He goes on to say, ‘Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world’ (2 Timothy 4:10 NKJV). Then he adds, ‘Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil’ (2 Timothy 4:14 KJV).

If you’re a church leader here’s the bottom line: if you can’t feel the pain, you can’t heal the pain! Hidden in your everyday problems and people pressures, you’ll find the wisdom to minister effectively.

So don’t get discouraged – keep going!

Ezekiel 37-39, 1 Peter 2

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Finishing strong in ministry (3)

‘Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock.’
Acts 20:28 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 20 NOV 2019

Here’s another issue church leaders often grapple with: they know how to feed others spiritually, but not themselves. Before leaving the church at Ephesus for the last time, Paul gathered its leaders together and said, ‘Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.’

Before you attempt to take care of others, learn to take care of yourself. Before God builds the ministry, He builds the minister; otherwise, you become an easy target for the Enemy.

When the administrative side of church threatened to rob the apostles of their daily prayer and Bible study time, they called ‘time out’, saying, ‘We will give ourselves continually to prayer and…the word’ (Acts 6:4 NKJV). Church leader, don’t just focus on preparing your sermon, keep your soul prepared!

And don’t just set boundaries for your people, set them for yourself. Believing you can cut corners spiritually opens you to wrong relationships and destructive habits.

As a result, you end up living on two levels – public service and private struggle. When that happens, you live with the fear of exposure, feel like a hypocrite, and forfeit the confidence necessary for God to use you (see 1 John 3:21, 22).

Consequently the church gets robbed spiritually and suffers. So…what do struggling servants of God need?

Spiritual fathers! Paul writes, ‘You might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers’ (1 Corinthians 4:15 NKJV).

Find a mature, seasoned friend in ministry and reach for help before your problem gets out of control. This isn’t just a good idea – your survival in ministry may depend on it!

Ezekile 40-41, 1 Peter 3

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Finishing strong in ministry (4)

‘Appoint elders [church leaders] in every city.’
Titus 1:5 NKJV

The UCB Word for Today - 21 NOV 2019

The fourth issue you find among church leaders who leave the ministry is this: they teach others how to build strong families without necessarily knowing how to build one themselves. Or they’re not willing to pay the price to do it and eventually it becomes a problem.

The greatest sermon you’ll ever preach is at home! Church leaders’ wives can slip into despair and depression because they feel like the ministry robs them of all their husband’s time and attention.

Their neglected children get tired of hearing, ‘I’m doing this for the Lord,’ so they rebel against God and the church, and act out in ways that embarrass the parent who has no time for them. Your wife and children should always be able to reach you.

If the church takes up seven days out of your week, it’s not the church’s fault – it’s yours! You need to start making changes!

And if you think this is a phenomenon of living in the 21st century, think again. Read the stories of leaders like David and Samuel, and you discover it’s possible to succeed on the job, yet fail miserably on the home front.

Too many preachers value the approval of their peers more than the love and respect of their families. Bear in mind that you won’t always be the church leader, but you will always be the husband of your wife and the father of your children.

So be there when they need you – and they’ll be there when you need them.

Ezekiel 42-44, 1 Peter 4

[Gracemohau]

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Know who’s guiding you

‘Let the Holy Spirit guide your lives.’
Galatians 5:16 NLT

The UCB Word for Today - 22 NOV 2019

Dr Charles Stanley says: ‘During a photographic trip my group had been travelling up a trail for almost three hours, and I began to have a funny feeling that we were going in the wrong direction. I asked the guide about it and he assured me everything was fine.

Not wanting to be presumptuous, I kept walking. After a few minutes, I noticed that my sense of uneasiness persisted; in fact, it was growing stronger.

I pulled out my compass and looked at the map. Sure enough, we were headed away from our intended destination.

It took us close to an hour and a half to return to where we’d taken the incorrect turn. Sadly, this meant by the time we got to the site, our window for taking photographs was cut short.

The event helped me realise two valuable lessons. First, when we sense an internal witness encouraging us to take a certain course of action, we should listen.

Second, when you and I choose people to guide us, we must be certain they know the path ahead better than we do. Have you ever felt something alerting you to pay attention or pulling you in a particular direction?

Perhaps you were listening to a sermon and you sensed God telling you to follow Him in obedience. Or maybe you walked into a restaurant and were filled with dread, as if you should leave quickly.

If you’re a believer, most likely these feelings were the promptings of the Holy Spirit speaking to your heart, warning you about danger, and encouraging you to submit to God’s purposes.’ Today, ‘Let the Holy Spirit guide [you].’

Ezekile 45-46, 1 Peter 5