The Daily Dose

Women in church

And I want women to be modest in their appearance. They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or by wearing gold or pearls or expensive clothes. For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do. 1 Timothy 2:9 & 10

Sometimes it is hard to be a woman.  There seems to be a separate set of rules that only apply to us, some even seem controlling and condescending.  It is true that a woman is to submit to her own husband, and that is not a bad thing.  It is actually a position of protection for her.  However, that doesn’t mean that we are inferior to all men.  Women were created to be a special gift for their husband and when a marriage is lined up with the creator, it is a beautiful thing!

Today’s passage talks about appropriate behavior for women in the church.  It says that women shouldn’t be trying to draw attention to themselves by their appearance, but to be modest.  Paul goes on to say that what should be noted about a woman is the good things she does, not how beautiful she is on the outside.  Of course, there is nothing wrong with being beautiful, but Paul is speaking to Pastor Timothy and telling him that women should not be a distraction to the man in the congregation.  Paul doesn’t have anything against women, he merely wants them to be noticed for doing God’s work, not for how good they look or how much they are talking.

This passage often gets overlooked or even misinterpreted to give a women very little place in the church, but that is not the heart of God.  God has a place for each one of us in the work of ministry and it is in doing good work for the kingdom of heaven.

Today I want to encourage you if you are a woman in ministry to first of all, be secure in who you are in Christ Jesus.  Your wholeness is in Him, not in the attention that comes from being in the spotlight.  Maybe your ministry is behind the scenes, but there can still be the temptation to call attention to yourself.  Let your delight be in the glory that you are giving God by fulfilling your purpose and be confident in His love for you as you do it.  Here’s the thing:  God loves women too and He didn’t make us so that we would be put in our place.  He put us in our place and gave us a good work to do there!

Today’s scripture reading:  1 Timothy 2:8-15

He desires all of us

In the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:3&4

God desires that all people would be saved.  John 3:16 says God loved the world so much that He gave His most precious and only Son. He gave Jesus so that anyone and everyone who believes in Him and His death, (paying the penalty for sin) resurrection from the dead, and ascension into heaven, that He is alive and living still, would not die an eternal death separated from God but have life everlasting with our loving Father.  God went to great lengths to make a way for us to be rescued from the sin that Adam and Eve committed, and He made it easy for us too.  Jesus did all the hard work. All we have to do is receive the gift that Jesus died to save us (every person on the earth). 

I know I am going on about this, but this is God’s heart!  He didn’t spare any expense.  He gave it all to get us back from the clutches of His enemy, that old serpent.  2 Peter 3:9 says God wants everyone to come to repentance.  It makes sense too.  Why would He sacrifice His only Son just to get some of us back.  Isn’t that price big enough for all of us?  Of course it is.  The price that Jesus paid was more than enough.  He got the keys to death and one day soon, He will seal the devil in that pit for all eternity.

So, the bottom line is, God wants all people back.  People are His creation and we are His greatest creation.  We are the only part of His creation that was made in His image.  That is a great honor and on top of that, He created us to be His family.  I love Him so much!  Now, He is depending on us, His sons and daughters, to let the world know that He made a way to escape the grip and traps of sin.  He wants us to be so filled up with gratitude and thankfulness that it flows out of us wherever we are.  He wants us to share with the people that come into our life His great love for them.  A love so great, He made a way to get everyone back.

Today I want to encourage you to give our heavenly Father some praise and thanksgiving once again for the provision of salvation He made and the sacrifice He gave . . . the perfect Lamb of God, Jesus!  Tell Him how much you love Him and how honored you are to be part of His family!  Then tell others.  Let the world know that you are so thankful that you never have to spend a day in hell separated from the Father who loves you.  Let today be the day that you start reaching out to the lost and broken of the world.  Not for you and not because you have to do it, only because He wants all His family back!

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 2:1-7

Instructions in the Word

Timothy, my son, here are my instructions for you, based on the prophetic words spoken about you earlier. May they help you fight well in the Lord’s battles.  1 Timothy 1:18

Such and encouraging verse.  Though I always expected that to go into ministry, someone would see the gift on me and help to draw it out with a word of encouragement of some kind.  Maybe, something kind of like that has happened to me in the past as a prayer and scripture prayed over me.  At another time with my husband a pastor prayed a scripture over us that I had been praying in my private time with God.  A “word” of God from God’s Word.  Peter called it a “more sure word” in the scriptures.  2 Peter 1:19 says: We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto you do well that you take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:  He was saying that the prophetic word of scripture is what lights up the darkness of your heart and leads you on the path God has for you.

I also like that Paul tells Timothy that he is fighting in the LORD’s battle.  It isn’t Timothy’s fight, although I’m sure he felt like it was some days.  Just like we all do when we get wearing in the work of the LORD.  This reminds me of 2 Chronicles 20:15 when one of the Levite’s prophesied over King Jehoshaphat.  He said “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.  This is the same message for us today.  We are in a battle, but it isn’t our fight, it’s God’s.  When you are on God’s side, you are going to win those battles every time.

Today I want to encourage you to follow the prophetic words in the scriptures to your planned path.  Words like: God makes all grace abound to you so you have all sufficiency in all things for every good work (2 Cor. 9:8)  If you are not sure where to start, do a scripture search on “good work”.  God has planned many good works that you would do before the world began. (Eph. 2:10) So, take some time to consider and pray about what they might be.  Next, when you come up against the battles in life remember that it’s not your fight, it’s God’s.  He going to win, so just stay close to Him and He will get you through, every time.

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 1:18-20

Be faithful

And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.  1 Timothy 1:12

This is an excellent life verse and one I can relate to personally.  God has put me into ministry.  Oh, I know it is not on the level of the apostle Paul’s ministry, but he has asked me to minister beyond myself.  He has enabled and equipped me for ministry and although I don’t always get it right, He gives me mercy and grace each day to get up and go after it again.  He has counted me faithful in that I am consistent in the little things that grow bigger.

This is what faithfulness is all about.  It is about what habits you establish and then do consistently on a daily basis.  For instant, you can have the habit of getting up and going to work each day, getting there on time and doing your best work while you are there.  You would be counted a faithful employee because of your consistent performance and dependability.  In contrast, you could consistently get up at noon, move to the couch, watch tv and social media all day.  However, even though you are consistent at this routine and have established a habit, you are not called faithful.

Faithfulness is only attributed to those things that are good and contributing to a cause beyond self.  In Paul’s case his faithfulness was in contributing to the kingdom of heaven.  He had established habits of ministering the gospel consistently and living a godly life to back up his message.  He was put into the ministry because he was faithful.  He goes on to say his success in ministry was because of God’s mercy and grace.

Ministry starts with faithfulness.  Whether it is faithfully attending church services, faithfully serving in your church or faithfully serving in your community, the enablement and equipping God gives comes after you have first established habits of consistently doing the right things for others.

Today I want to encourage you to examine your faithful attitude.  Are you consistent at doing the right things that are good for you and others? Have you established habits that strengthen and grow those around you?  A good test of this would be your relationships with your boss or those you work or serve closely with.  Decide today to take a step up in your faithfulness by starting one new habit of faithfulness.  The first place to start in your faithfulness is setting aside quiet time with you Father each day.  Become faithful in your relationship with God and He will lead you to the next steps to enable and equip you for the ministry.

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 1:12-17

God’s law

Knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate. 1 Timothy 1:9

The laws of the land.  Thankfully we have them.  Our country’s laws were established on many of the biblical laws of the Old Testament.  In fact, most of us know that the Ten Commandments used to be inscribed on the walls of every public school in the country.  The law is good.  It sets a standard to live by, and we have law enforcement to see that the laws of the land are followed.  In the next chapter of Timothy, it says that we have authorities so we can live a quiet and peaceable life in godliness and honesty, and that is a very good thing.

In today’s verse, it says that the laws are made for lawless and insubordinate people, not for the righteous.  I’m so glad it is true.  This is how we live in peace and safety.  Although, we know there is evil out there in the world, we don’t live in fear of that evil because we have laws that will be enforced if broken.  If you think about it, there are very few out there that hide out never to be found, because the law is there to bring them in to ensure punishment, rehabilitation and in many cases release them back into society to live within the laws.

In contrast, we as believers have God’s laws written on our hearts. Hebrews 10:16 says: “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them.”  As God’s people, we know what honors God and what doesn’t.  If we follow the conscience that He has put within us at the point of salvation, we will instinctively follow the laws of goodness and peace.  We get into trouble when we begin to take on a selfish attitude of, not what is best for me, but what I want at this moment.  Becoming so determined to get something that doesn’t belong to you results in behavior that is guaranteed to hurt someone else.

Paul makes a list of these activities and although some of them are not against our natural laws, they are against God’s law.  They are:

1. unholy and profane – God’s law
2. murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers – God’s and man’s law
3. manslayers – God’s and man’s law
4. fornicators – God’s law
5. sodomites – God’s law
6. kidnappers – God’s and man’s law
7. liars – God’s law
8. perjurers – God’s and man’s law  

In this list you can see that the things that are only God’s laws are still evil and selfish acts that are done because of an evil desire within a person.  The things against God’s law hurt other people and eventually even the person doing the evil.

Today I want to encourage you to consider God’s law of goodness and love written on your heart.  Then consider if there are any areas on this list that try to infect your life.  Hopefully not, but even telling a little lie can be a “go to” in a tight spot.  Let God’s consciousness guide you in your days activities and then you will have no need to worry about breaking His laws.

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 1:7-11

Your ministry

Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith. 1 Timothy 1:5

I have been struggling the last couple of days trying to decide if Timothy was the direction that the Lord would have me go.  As I read the first chapter several times to pray about what to write about, I could not sense anything for my direction.  Finally, I started asking God if I should head in a different direction, especially since Timothy is a book written to a pastor.  I told God, this book is for pastors, not for me.  Who am I to write about instructions to pastors?  That’s when I finally had a break through.  I believe God showed me that the book isn’t for pastors, it is for ministers and leaders.  We all are ministers of the gospel and leaders in the kingdom of heaven, or at least we should be.  I felt like that was the answer I needed to move forward in this direction.  So, now to continue with 1 Timothy, I will proceed with a different mind set of how Paul’s words apply to all ministry, no matter what stage you are in.

So, in today’s text Paul is instructing Timothy to tell others not to teach other doctrines.  As we read on, he says that the message should be brought in love from a pure heart and good conscience with sincere faith.  This is also what the focus of our mission should be today.  We are to minister the good news of salvation in love from a pure/clean heart and good/clear conscience with sincerity of faith.  We are not to be distracted by other doctrines that causes separation.  God doesn’t want us to try to argue someone into salvation.  It is not a productive way to win people to the LORD and arguing usually in not done with a pure heart, clear conscience and sincere faith.  Think about it.  When we argue, usually the motivation is because we think we are right and want others to submit to our way of thinking.  This is the exact opposite of the instruction given here.  Arguing is prideful, because we are right and want others to know we are right.  Arguing is not motivated from a pure heart because it comes from a force that we want others to admit they were wrong.  Arguing and disputing certainly isn’t done in love because in your heart you believe the other person is wrong and should listen to you.

Effective ministry must be done in the love of God.  Recognizing that the reason you are sharing with others is because God loves them and that is the reason you love them.  Not because of anything they have or have not done to deserve your love or God’s for that matter.  This is where a pure heart and clear conscience comes from.  Lastly, it is a step of faith to love others with God’s love.  You have to trust that God’s love will break through even the hardest of hearts.  Especially when a person is underserving of your love, you can still love them with God’s love.

Today I want to encourage you in whatever ministry you have.  Whether it is a position in your church, neighborhood or workplace, share the love of God first of all.  As you speak words of encouragement and love to those around you, remember that it is God’s love for them that is motivating your heart and God’s love is first of all pure.  Speak to others with the clear conscience that you are looking for nothing from them in return and your desire is only that they would know how much God loves them to the point of sending His son so He could have a relationship with them.  Lastly, recognize the sincerity of your faith because you are trusting that as you share God’s love with others, He will show up and make it so real to them.  It is not our place to prove God’s love for others is real, our job is to simply share it with other.  After we share, God does His part and shows up in their life to make Himself real to them.  That is what brings people to Him.

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 1:3-7

Next generation

To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.  1 Timothy 1:2

This is thought provoking.  Paul is writing a letter to Timothy and he calls Timothy his son in the faith.  Timothy had a father.  We know because he is mentioned previously in the book of Acts.  However, Paul was Timothy’s spiritual father in that he mentored and train him up in the things of faith.  Timothy traveled with Paul on many of his missionary trips and then became the pastor/bishop of the church in Ephesus. 

So, what is a spiritual father or mother?  It is someone who walks with you in life and coaches/trains you in the things of the Spirit/God.  In the case of Paul and Timothy, Paul mentored Timothy until he was spiritually mature enough to take on a ministry of his own.  In a sense, Paul was duplicating himself in Timothy to reach the next generation.  To continue the work of the ministry after Paul was gone.

It is really the way the gospel has continued to grow and pass down through the ages, through training and teaching the up-and-coming leaders of the day.  In our day we have schools that train people for ministry, but that can only go so far.  Until you walk things out, there is training that cannot be taught in a classroom.  You may be thinking: “yes, but that was the apostle Paul, I’m not qualified to teach anyone?  The fact is every believer can bring others along with them.  It can be as simple as inviting a neighbor to church or a small group.  It can be something like praying with others or simply offering an encouraging word.  What ever opportunity God puts in front of you, you always have something to offer.

Today I want to encourage you to look for someone you can walk along with in life to help them spiritually.  Invite someone to church or offer that encouraging word.  Even if it is not accepted the first time, a seed was planted, and you can try again when the next opportunity comes.  We won’t live here forever, let’s make sure we all do our part to ensure the next generation carries on the good news.

Today’s scripture reading: 1 Timothy 1:1-7

Don’t get tired

But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.  2 Thessalonians 3:13

Here is the bottom line!  Keep doing good and don’t get tired of it.  Sometimes it can seem exhausting to always do the right thing and always do what is best for others.  Let’s face it, taking short cuts is the easier road to travel.  That’s the reason they are called short cuts.  However, to live honorably and uprightly, the right thing to do is always the good thing.  For example: is it the right thing to do to pass up every beggar on the street?  Or is it good to give, to help even though you don’t know what they will do with what you gave.  The fact is you have done your part and it was good.  Now the ball is in their court to do the right thing.  It may not happen, but they will continue to be in want, but you will continue to bless others and do good.

Another example is with family and friends.  It is good to bless them and consider them first, but our first thoughts are usually for ourselves.  It can be easy to get into the mind set that if I take care of everyone else, who will take care of me?  Don’t feel bad if you have ever thought that, you are not alone.  However, when you trust God that He is going to bless you as you are a blessing to others, He will and He is much better at it than you will ever be.

Paul ends up this chapter talking about not hanging out with those who don’t line their lives up with the Word of God.  He is careful to say don’t treat them like an enemy, but help them as a brother in the body of believers . . . by doing good and giving instruction.

Today I want to encourage you to not get tired of doing good to others.  When it comes right down to it, good works are only those works that we do toward others.  Doing good is helping, serving and blessing those who cross your path each day.  Whether it’s family, friends, neighbors, co-workers or even strangers, always watch for the opportunity to do a kind or loving deed.  Even Jesus said “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (see Acts 20:35)

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:13-18

Be an example

Not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us.  2 Thessalonians 3:9

You are an example.  No matter how you live your life, you are an example of something.  Your life or at least part of your life is always on display.  What example are you setting?  Is it a godly, serving example or is it an idle, self-serving example?

In today’s text, the apostle Paul talks to the Thessalonians about how to be an example.  He starts out telling them to withdraw or stay away from those who walk disorderly/disorganized and anyone who does not line up with the Word of God.  Then he goes on to talk about how his team behaved when they were there in person.  He says they were not disruptive or out of order, and that they worked to support themselves so they were not a burden on the church.  Isn’t this interesting.  Even though he went there to minister the gospel and serve the people, he didn’t want to be a burden financially to them.  He qualifies this by saying his team was authorized, but they wanted to be an example to the church on how to conduct themselves in ministry.

He concludes this section by saying that those who do not work shouldn’t expect to eat and they are displaying an unruly life of being a busybody.  Lastly, he tells them how to handle the people who refuse to work.  He says they should work in quietness and eat their own bread. 

Yikes!  Those words seem kind of harsh, though I guess Paul was never one to beat around the bush.  The point is that we are setting an example in the church and in the world.  In doing that we are representing all of heaven. What message is it that we want to convey?  Do we want to display the goodness and love of God, or do we want to show them that the kingdom of heaven is stingy and needy?

Today I want to encourage you to be an example of the goodness and love of God.  Even when you have opportunity to cut corners and do the minimum requirement, become that person that goes the extra mile and beyond the call of duty.  In setting the example of taking care of the biz as you see it needed, it won’t be long until you notice the people around you take a step up too. 

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Pray for us

Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith. 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2

I love these verses because it makes me realize that the apostle Paul, who was one of the all time great ministers, depended on the prayers of God’s people.  He was not only successful because of God’s help, it was also because of the church faithfully praying for him and his team.  It makes sense because this is how God planned for it to work.  All things/people working together for good and for God’s purpose.  Just as the apostle Paul talked to the people in Corinth (see 1 Corinthians 12) about the church being one body, his ministry depended on that “body” to sustain them through prayer.  Even though he wasn’t with them physically all the time, he remained as part of the body so that his team would receive life and empowerment through the body (of believers) praying. 

I am also inspired by the words that he asked them to be praying.  He said “Pray that the word of the LORD runs quickly and is glorified.  That they would be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men.”  He said the word of God spread quickly in Thessalonica and he wants them to pray that it will move the same way where ever his team goes.  Then, of course we all know the persecution that Paul’s team faced on a daily basis, so he asked them to pray that they would not come up against so much opposition and that the message would have a clear path to get through.  Obviously, their prayers were answered.  Paul’s success in reaching the known world of his time is evidence of that.

How does this apply to us today?  We can pray too.  Pray for ministries around the world and for ministries in your local area.  What is really great is that we don’t have to wonder or make up what we think we should pray.  We can pray the same thing that Paul asked the Thessalonians to pray.  We can pray that the word of the Lord spreads quickly in our area and around the world.  We can see this is happening more and more as modern ways of communication are expanding.  We can also pray all barriers or obstructions out of the way for the message to get through.

Today I want to encourage you to pray.  Pray for your ministry, pray for local ministries and pray for ministries around the world.  Pray for internet ministries and pray for all media ministries that the word would spread even quicker than it already does.  Also pray all roadblocks out of the way.  We all have this part in the body.  No matter what ministry you are a part of, your number one ministry is to pray!

Today’s scripture reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5