1 Thessalonians 5:14

1 Thessalonians 5:14

We urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish those who refuse to work.  Encourage those who are losing heart.  Help the physically weak.  Be patient towards everyone. 

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Admonish those who work.  We are created to work.  We are created to feel a sense of accomplishment.  We are created to move our lives and the lives of the people around us forward.  When we refuse to work, two things happen.  First, we lose the ability to feel accomplishment.  More importantly, when we are idle we are disobedient to our Creator and the way that He has created us.

Do you enjoy accomplishing things?  What things do you enjoy the most?  What does this say about you and what God may be calling you into?

Second Thought:

Encourage those who lose heart.  The reality is that life is difficult.  We are always needing to overcome the hard life around us.  It is easy to lose heart and become discouraged.  As a community, God calls us to come beside the discouraged and help them along.  We are called to sow hope in the people around us.

Are you an encourager?  Whom do you encourage?  What might this say to you about to whom God is calling you to minister?

Third Thought:

Help the weak.  Be patient with everyone.  There will be those who are unable to do things – or at least unable to do them as we might do them.  For those who cannot, we need to help.  God helps us when we cannot save ourselves.  Therefore we need to help others when they are in need as well.  For those who do things differently than we might, we need to be patient and let them express what God is doing within them.

Are you a natural helper?  Are you naturally patient with people around you?

Passage for Tomorrow: 1 Thessalonians 5:15-17