Life

Today's Scripture
"You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” Exodus 20:16 NIV

Thoughts for Today
The ninth commandment tells us that we are not to speak dishonestly about our neighbor. Who is our neighbor? Anyone in the human race!

This commandment is broken not only when we tell an outright lie, but also when we use deception of any kind. We have probably all been guilty of participating in gossip, either by carrying tales ourselves or by listening to others gossip and remaining silent, failing to stand up for the accused.

Consider this…
Gossip is often couched in seemingly caring language: Please understand?I don’t mean to put this person down, but did you know … or Isn’t it sad that Joe is abusing his wife … or I wouldn’t tell you this, but you need to know how to pray.

If for some reason we do need to share something negative about another person, we first need to be certain that we have our facts straight. Then we need to examine our motives for wanting to tell someone about it and to tell only those who really do need to know.

The Bible says “the tongue has the power of life and death.” (Proverbs 18:21) Are you using yours for life? Strive always to speak the truth in love.

Prayer…
Lord, forgive me for the times I have participated in gossip … the times my careless words have hurt someone. Help me always to speak the truth in love. In Jesus’ name

What is Faith ?

The natural question is, “What is faith?”

In Hebrews 11:1, the writer gives us the technical definition of biblical faith,

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith deals with unseen reality. In fact, Weymouth’s translation says, “Faith is a conviction of the reality of things we do not see.”

You might think, “That’s a nice definition, but what does that really mean?” That is a good question. And it is answered by the examples given in Hebrews 11, which show different ways people expressed their faith in God, because there is not just one way to demonstrate faith in God:

Abel shows us that faith is giving our best to God. He deserves our first and our best.
Enoch shows us that faith is walking with God. It is living a life in constant connection with God, even when you can’t sense or feel Him.
Noah shows us that faith is making preparations as though Christ is coming back today, even when there is seemingly no evidence.
Abraham shows us that faith is obeying God, even though you may not know where He is leading you.
Sarah shows us that faith is receiving God’s promise, even when public opinion says, “No way!”
Moses shows us that faith is living life in light of eternity, and allowing that focus to affect all of life’s decisions.
Commit today to live this life of faith. If you do, you will truly please God!