by Mark Trowbridge
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:8-10
God has given us many gifts in our lives, but sometimes we don’t use them to the measure He wants us to. My challenge is to use those gifts. When we use our gifts to serve others we show them love. When we use our gifts properly, others will see our attitude is one that comes from God and not of ourselves. They will accept what we have to offer and recognize that we are here to serve them. God has given you gifts not for yourself but for others. Let Him work through you through your gifts to touch those around you.
by Mark Trowbridge
“Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude.” 1 Peter 3:8
God wants us to stay humble in everything we do. He wants us to not think more of ourselves than we ought to. He wants us to love each other in such a way that we can sympathize with each others hurts. If we strive for being united with each other we will learn how to recognize each others needs, and thus focusing on them. This is why God tells us to have a tender heart toward each other. When we focus on these attributes it, staying humble is not all that hard. It is all about the perspective in which we approach life.
by Mark Trowbridge
”But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2:9
God tells us that we are part of His royal family. He calls us a priest, because we have access to Him on a daily basis. He calls us special, because we are His very own. He created us to declare His praises, because He rescued us from darkness and has brought us into His wonderful light. We are a blessed people, because we have God as our Lord. So stand up today a little taller because you are royalty, and a priest, a very special person of God.
by Mark Trowbridge
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” James 5:16
God wants you to talk to Him today, for He has great plans for you. Your prayers are powerful and effective for daily living. He promises that He will answer you and be with you. All you have to do is ask. I want to share with you one of those answered prayers that our Lord did for one of my families good friend. She asked for prayer this past Sunday, and my wife, my daughter, mom and I prayed with her. She had a growth detected by the doctor on x-rays in her throat. She was very worried about cancer and so were the doctors. We prayed that not only would God heal her, but that the doctors would be amazed, seeing that it was there, but gone. The doctor on Monday was doing a biopsy, through a scope and could not believe it, as the growth was gone, but He could see where it was. He said truly this was a miracle. So our God is faithful and can still heal. So today, if you need prayer, call out to Him and watch what He will do, for prayers are powerful and effective.
by Mark Trowbridge
“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.” James 4:10
So many times in my life, I fail at humbling myself, and wanting to lift myself up first. But God reminds me that it is not about me, but it is about Him. He is the one that we should humble ourselves toward. It is humility, that will cause God to lift you and I up. So which would you rather have promoting you, God or man? I choose God, for He is the lifter of my head and gives me pure joy. So if you want God to say “Hey look at my child” while lifting you up, then we have to stay humble, for it is humility that is the key to Him doing that!
by Mark Trowbridge
“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.” James 3:13
What kind of life are you living? Are you living the good life according to the Scriptures? Well God wants us to live in such a way that others notice a difference in our lives. He wants us to represent Him in everything we do. God wants us to have humility that comes with wisdom in all of our actions. He wants us to have wisdom and understanding, which only comes from Him. When we live the good life that He has called us to live, we honor God and represent His family well.
by Mark Trowbridge
Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.” James 2:18
God wants us to show our faith through our actions. He does not want us to just talk about what we believe, but He wants us to exhibit it for others to see our faith. I know you all have heard this statement, but it is true “some may only read the Bible through you”. Are they reading the complete Bible through you, or do you lack some of the important messages, due to the cares of the world strangling your testimony? I know we all have to stay on guard to make sure our faith is backed up by our deeds. When we do that our faith becomes alive and not dead or meaningless.
by Mark Trowbridge
“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.” James 1:5 As we celebrate many graduations this time of year, we give advice to all the graduates. I believe the most important advice we can give is, “now that you have knowledge, seek wisdom for the application of your learned knowledge.” True wisdom is a gift and comes from God. So Scripture states, if you lack wisdom seek God and ask Him for it. He promises to be very generous and will give it to you. He won’t look down upon you but will receive you with open arms. Now this is not only advice for graduates, but for all in everyday living. Need Wisdom? Ask God for it!
by Mark Trowbridge
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Hebrews 13:8
Do you really believe that Jesus is the same as the One we have read about? Do you really believe what He says? If we totally believe, without hesitation that Jesus is who He said, then why do we not act like it all the time? I am also asking myself this same question. He tells us that He will never leave us or forsake us, but we act like He has done so. We get our eyes on our circumstances that we are in, and loose sight of who He said He was and what He will do for us. He loves us unconditionally, and sometimes we feel like we have to earn His love by acting different that is unnatural. Today, lets rest in the fact that Jesus, our Lord and Savior is the same yesterday, today and forever, and who He is, is faithful and true.
by Mark Trowbridge
“And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
Many people today claim to have faith. But do we really believe what we say is true? Do we really believe that God sent His Son to earth to redeem us? Do we really believe that we will spend eternity with Him if we just have faith? These questions if we really believe, should cause us to act differently. We should have substance to our faith and earnestly seek Him. However, many times I fall short and need to adjust my focus, concentrating on what is really important, and that is my faith. Our faith gives us hope and a purpose in life. Without it, we live a life meaningless. So today, I encourage you to not only have faith, but really believe it with your whole heart causing you to do things differently.
