6 Minute Read
Be Still
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a couple of minutes to breathe deeply, to quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, prayerfully ask the Lord to speak to you in this time and let Him know that you will be listening and will make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Today’s Bible Reading:
Ecclesiastes 4:1–6:12
2 Corinthians 6:14–7:7
Psalm 47:1-9
Proverbs 22:16
Listen to the Lord
Slowly and reflectively read the following verses and listen to what God will say to you through them. Then, consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NLT): “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.”
Reflections from Scripture:
Too many of us are far too individualistic. Maybe it’s because of insecurity. Perhaps it’s because of pride. Maybe it’s because we don’t want to be a bother to others.
But the end result is often the same – we try to do most things ourselves. And the fact of the matter is that when we fail to invite others into the journey with us, we greatly diminish the degree of success that we could have had and the enjoyment of the journey.
Moving is no fun. I despise it. Everything has to be carefully packed, and fragile items have to be wrapped. And no matter how much stuff you put into boxes, there’s always more. But in our last two moves, we were blessed to have church folks help us. They showed up to voluntarily abuse their bodies by helping to load everything on trucks and transport those items to our new home.
Those moves would have been overwhelming and taken a month of Sundays if we did it ourselves. But having friends show up to help made the task much easier and much more enjoyable.
But this principle applies on a grander scale, too. As I write this, Louisiana recently experienced the devastation of Hurricane Ida. As a Southern Baptist, I am part of a denomination that long ago realized that many churches working together can accomplish so much more than a church working on its own.
My heart has been overwhelmed with gratitude as I have seen our SBC Disaster Relief ministry set up mobile kitchens to feed the hungry. Almost certainly, other SBC Disaster Relief volunteers are using chain saws to cut trees and do repairs on people’s homes. Those people are Southern Baptists, and those resources are made possible as individual Southern Baptists partner together and give to the Cooperative Program.
People working together can accomplish so much more than many people working alone.
Is there some task that you want to accomplish? Or some job that you even believe that God is calling you to do? Then consider inviting someone to join you and then work together to achieve that goal.
Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NLT): “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.”
Spend Time in Prayer
Lord Jesus, You always sent out the disciples in at least groups of twos. When you left earth and went back to Heaven, You left us the church so that believers can live life in a community. Your plan has always been for us to work together. Help me see the benefit of joining others to accomplish so much more than we could ever achieve separately. I pray this in Your Name, Amen.
Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com). His latest book is God’s Grace in the Real World. Connect with him on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.
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