Good Offense is Also Good Defense

[S] Titus 1:9 --
  ⁹holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.

[O] As with the World Cup soccer games we enjoy watching these days need good defense as well as good offense, my spiritual life also needs both good defense as well as good offense.  I must be able to defend my faith in Christ whenever faced with any attacks on my faith with my firm foundation in God's promises and truth.  At the same time, I must also look for ways to have an offensive strategy to challenge those who are contradicting God's truth.  I cannot just let them do what they desire as a passive believer.  Am I equipped to do this?  Have I been too much of a passive believer at workplaces when others talk down on Christian faith or other Christian believers?

[A] As much as I need to know the fundamentals of having a genuine faith in Christ, I also should prepare my mind to refute those who contradict God's truth.  This is not about declaring a war or anything like that but I must stand firm on my faith and if that means taking an offensive attitude, I must know how to do that.

[P] Dear God, may I not be too lame when it comes to refuting those who contradict Your ways.  Please train me with Your word as I go to You daily to learn Your ways.  Allow me to have an offensive strategy.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Restoring the Shiny-ness

[S] Psalm 80:3 -- ³O God, restore us
         And cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved.

[O] This passage reminds me of restoring a tarnished silverware which over time turns from a shiny, sparkling silver to dark and black-covered surface.  What's also interesting is that even though this process takes place over time, I usually notice it one day almost thinking the tarnishing took place overnight.  I enjoy applying the cleaning solution to tarnished silverware because as the original shiny and sparkling surface emerges from beneath, I get a sense as though I've just made them fresh.  And on top of that when I can see myself reflecting on the newly restored shiny surface, it brings me a truly refreshing sense.  This psalmist must have been thinking about the same concept when he wrote this phrase -- how our lives can over time gets covered with "tarnish" and stops reflecting God's face and how we need to request God to restore us to the original state of letting His face shine upon us.

[A] The tarnishing takes place over time, little by little.  Instead of waiting until I'm "hopelessly" tarnished, I need to apply the cleaning solution on daily basis to keep my shiny-ness in order to have His face shine off my face.  I feel this cleaning solution for me is my prayer time with God and I need to dedicate more of my personal prayer time.

[P] Dear God, I request that You would restore me and cause Your face to shine upon my face as I approach You during my personal prayer times.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Direct Source of Equipping

[S] 2 Timothy 3:16-17 --
 ¹⁶All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;
 ¹⁷so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

[O] Verse 16 is well-known to explain how the Scripture came about -- it came directly from God through various authors and that make Scripture very credible.  However the question to ask at this point is: "What difference does this make for me?"  Unless there is a direct impact in my own life, that fact alone, although it's true and fantastic, may have nothing to do with me.  That's why Paul continues with verse 17 where he explains the purpose of God-inspired Scripture given to us.  It is a tool to keep me adequate, equipped for every good work.  Now the question is will I be utilizing this tool to do just that?

[A] There is a direct relationship with my desire of serving God and doing His ministry to how much I delve into the Word of God because without doing the latter, the former is impossible to accomplish because I won't have the right tools to stay equipped to carry out the good works for God.

[P] Dear God, I pray that Your Scripture will be directly impacting my life equipping me to carry out the wonderful tasks You had planned for my life.  May I not try to take short cuts in supplying myself with adequate dosage of Your Word every day.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

No Status Quo Faith Possible

[S] 2 Timothy 1:13-14 --
 ¹³Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.
 ¹⁴Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.

[O] Paul charges Timothy to retain the sound teachings in the faith and love.  He also tells to guard through the Holy Spirit indwelling in us all.  Paul writes this because just like how gravity naturally pulls things down, unless we continue to retain the good teachings of Christ as well as guard them, we will either lose them or will be stolen from by the master deceiver of this world.  There is no such thing as a status quo in living out Christ-like life and that's what Paul is emphasizing here.

[A] I need to re-examine my spiritual life for any areas that I consider status quo thinking that I can some how retain and guard my faith.  One of these areas is my life as a father to my children.  I also need to put more efforts to retain the quality of excellence and guarding that position by learning and researching on how I can be a better dad by better adapting to my children's growing up such that I can be applying the right (timely sensitive) wisdom to bring them up.

[P] Dear God, I surrender all aspects of my life to You.  Please sprinkle Your Love and Grace on it so my life won't go sour.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

What Will People Do When I'm Gone?

[S] 2 Chronicles 24:15b,17-19 --
And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the LORD continually all the days of Jehoiada.
 ¹⁷But after the death of Jehoiada the officials of Judah came and bowed down to the king, and the king listened to them.
 ¹⁸They abandoned the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols; so wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guilt.
 ¹⁹Yet He sent prophets to them to bring them back to the LORD; though they testified against them, they would not listen.

[O] Jehoiada left behind a spiritual legacy by being the key influencer to the Israelites to continually worship God.  After he went to be with God, the leaders of the Israelite society almost immediately abandoned following God and turned to their own idols.  I am touched by Jehoiada's charismatic leadership which sustained the people's perspective towards God and to keep Him at the center of their lives.  I hope it wasn't purely based on fear of his power that people followed him and I also hope my life will be used by God to keep people around me focused on God because of my influences on them.

[A] Being an influencer to people around me means disciplines around my own life to do just that first.  I need to stay humble toward God and others at all times while fearing God everyday.  I need to be thankful in all situations for His grace in my life because it's due to that grace that I can even be the person I'm trying to be.

[P] Dear God, thank You for the wonderful grace in my life.  Please continue to humble me so I may stay on my knees as I surrender my life to be one of your influencers for those around me.  Please take this life and use it for shining Your light on others.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Look Out for Unfinished Businesses

[S] 2 Kings 10:28-29 --

 ²⁸Thus Jehu eradicated Baal out of Israel.
 ²⁹However, as for the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin, from these Jehu did not depart, even the golden calves that were at Bethel and that were at Dan. (NASB)

²⁸ In this way, Jehu destroyed every trace of Baal worship from Israel. ²⁹ He did not, however, destroy the gold calves at Bethel and Dan, with which Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to sin.  (NLT)

[O] Jehu did a fabulous job of eradicating Baal out of Israel with remarkable plans and execution.  However, he still left the golden calves which was enough for him to follow the sin of Jeroboam in the end.  This picture is so typical of my doing God's work where I always seem to leave a bit of an unfinished business despite the efforts I put in.  I am so susceptible to the gravity pull of sin and in many instances I can easily fool myself to think I've done such a great job for God I can get away with a little unfinished area.  However God desires a complete obedience and so He may work through me.

[A] Especially after doing some task for God, stay humble and seek His mercy in my life.  Do not rely on my achievements to fool myself of thinking I'm worthy of His praise.  Instead, reflect on which areas I've missed and surrender them to His grace.

[P] Dear God, please keep me humble as I desire to serve You in my family, church, and community.  May I not get a big head from serving You as that is my simple duty for what You have done for me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Seared Into Our Conscience

[S] 1 Timothy 4:1-2 --
  ¹But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,
 ²by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron,

[O] At first read, this passage gave me the impression of some witches with evil looks, but God seem to whisper into my ears how the devil is like the wolf in sheep clothing -- looks safe on the outside but not so inside.  In the society I life in now, it is so difficult to discern right from wrong, truth from lies, and genuine from counterfeits.  This is so because over time we drifted away from the core of God's ways, little by little we shifted away and before we know it, we're so far from the Way.  As Paul wrote in verse 2, slowly but surely the hypocrisy of liars seared into our conscience as with a branding iron.  This gives me a clear picture of the branding iron searing its marks permanently into people's conscience.  I thought our consciences are unalterable because God gave them to us but unless we daily abide in Him, we cannot guarantee to guard our consciences against these doctrines of daemons.

[A] Continue to spend the alone time with God through meditating on His words in order not to drift away from the stream of His wisdom and knowledge.

[P] Dear God, protect me and my family's consciences to be immune from the deceitful spirits and doctrines of daemons.  May our children continue to abide in Your word and please grant them more desire to read Your word more and more.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Tangible Before Intangible

[S] 1 Timothy 3:5 --
  ⁵(but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?)

[O] We serve a God who is not physical tangible but dwells in us spiritually and thus when we talk about serving Him, it can easily become theoretical and idealistic.  There is nothing wrong with that but if we only dwell on the theory of serving God then that could pose a problem because we will never apply into our lives to bring the results we desire in the first place based on the theory itself.  Now, that's pretty theoretical isn't it?  Well, digging deeper into this verse, I am quite challenged to live out my life as a husband and a father at my home foremost according to the principles God wrote out for me in the Bible.  Unless I can apply these at home, how will I be taking care of areas in my home church regardless of what I do?  Even if I could write books on how to be a godly husband and father, I must live it out myself to reflect the principles.

[A] As I read this passage, I am convicted to shift my fulcrum toward my family so that I may dedicate more of my thoughts and energy for my wife and children especially during this summer break for my children.  This will naturally translate into spending more time with them, but it must start with spending more of my heart to prepare and plan to spend that quality time with them.  I've been pre-occupied with organizing and leading the small group efforts for last 10 months and while I must continue to run that race, I have to balance my dedication to my own family just like how Paul explained in verse 5.

[P] Dear God, please continue to train me so I may apply Your wonderful principles into my life by migrating it 12 inches from my brain to my heart especially in the area of my family.  May Your name be lifted up in my family and may I be the one leading them by caring for them diligently.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Who Has the Bird Brain?

[S] 1 Kings 17:4,6 -- 
⁴"It shall be that you will drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there."
 ⁶The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he would drink from the brook.

[O] God commanded the ravens to provide food for Elijah, and they indeed obeyed these commands.  It is truly amazing to think that even the bird recognizes God's commands and obeys exactly -- for breakfast and dinner.  Their obedience was used to achieve God's purpose of keeping alive Elijah in order for him to carry out a greater task for God.  I don't know why God chose ravens to do this job, but I would associate ravens with dirty scavengers unsuitable for carrying out a good cause.  But even such a bird adhering to God's commands is used to take part in God's assignments.  So, if more of us understand God's commands and obey to the fullest, we just may witness more of God's plans unfolding around us.

[A] If the bird-brain can be used to do God's tasks, then shouldn't my human/intelligent brain be able to do much more?  That's what I aim to do -- seek His commands for me and simply obey them completely.  Not just when I feel like it or when I have time for it.

[P] Dear God, may my faith and obedience increase beyond the capacity of the raven's life.  I want to take part in Your wonderful purposes here and I realize that is going to start by my obedience.  Please continue to teach me to hear and obey Your commands.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

The Rest is Given, Not Earned

[S] 2 Chronicles 14:6 --
  ⁶He built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and there was no one at war with him during those years, because the LORD had given him rest.

[O] King Asa ruled according to what was right in God's eye and as God honored that He allowed his reign to live in rest away from wars and disturbance.  Other kings had no interest of following God and took matters into their own hands to establish the rest by conquering other nations around them.  But instead of rest it created more disturbance and on top of that drew them more into the idol worshiping away from God even more throwing them into a vicious cycle.  King Asa's reign, however, was different "because LORD had given him rest."   This is a principle I must not forget because my life now seems far from being restful with so much going on and I am trying to find a way to create that restfulness when the key lies with living an upright life for God first and then He will give me the rest I deserve.

This reminds me of the story of a successful businessman who went on a vacation to a small port city and one day when he met a fisherman resting in his front porch overlooking the ocean he ask: Why aren't you fishing now?  The fisherman replied, he's already caught his catch of the day so he doesn't need to fish anymore.  The businessman explained that if the fisherman went out and caught more fish, then he can make more money, and then even grow his business by hiring more people to increase revenue even more.  When the fisherman asked what the benefits would be, the businessman said he can increase his earning while working less and less.  The fisherman asked why would he want to do that?  So you can relax and rest and enjoy your life after earning a lot more money.  To that the fisherman said:  What do you think I'm doing right now?

[A] I can easily fall into this trap of working so hard to gain that rest.  But if I almost kill myself trying to get there, I'm missing the point all together like that businessman's idea.  The rest comes from God when I enjoy Him foremost and I just cannot forget this especially in my packed schedules of life these days.

[P] Dear God, I totally desire resting in You.  Please remind me again and again so I won't try to gain that rest on my own way with my own efforts.  Please grant me the rest while I put Your agenda foremost.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Don't Dwell Forever

[S] Philippians 3:13-14 --
 ¹³Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,
 ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

[O] Mistakes are difficult to shake off because they seem to haunt my mind endlessly bringing all sorts thoughts around it with what if this and that.  It's always a good thing to learn from my mistakes but the problem lies when I begin to dwell on it and cannot move onward.  God designed us to move forward and so while I need to take a moment to reflect, learn, and apply for future, I must press on toward the goal God placed in my heart.  The driving factor in life must be the goal (or vision) from God so putting my eyes on that goal where I must dash toward is a key to having a worthwhile life even through ups and downs in life.

[A] At this mark of first year of starting up the small group ministry, I can get stuck on what if I did this and that so while I must make adjustments and corrections to improve the ministry's growth, my heart must lock on to God's "goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

[P] Dear God, Paul's message of forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward hit home for me.  I give You the awesome glory for leading me through with You wonderful encouragements and principles which I must grab in order to pass through this cycle of starting up a brand new ministry.  May I continue to abide in Christ Jesus.  In Your name.  Amen.

Perfecting the Good Works

[S] Philippians 1:6 --
  ⁶For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

[O] Paul's charge to the Philippians believers about how he believes God will complete the wonderful works He had begun even though as human beings we run up against discouragements, failures, and obstacles along the way.  Our short-sightedness will most definitely restrict us to focus on the problems at hand forgoing the vision God initially placed on our hearts but this verse encourages us to believe that it is He who began the work in the first place will bring it to completion one way or another.  It's not about how I will carry it to completion.

[A] My mind's been pre-occupied with how to lay the foundation for the small group ministry at our church and with about 10 months into the process from ground zero, we're going through some challenges (which was expected) and boy they can become so enlarged as huge road blocks.  But I am going to surrender them all to Him who began this good work because He knows what's going on and He has full control over them to bring it through to completion in His timing.

[P] Dear God, I surrender this small group ministry to You. It's so easy to catch myself focusing on the achievement aspects of the ministry in my own perspectives but in the end it's about how You will carry this out to display Your power and wonder.  So continue to humble me to stay on my knees following after Your leadership.  Please continue to encourage the leaders and potential leaders as we approach them to join us.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Objective Parenting

[S] Ephesians 6:4 -- ⁴Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

[O] Parenting is a tricky business because while I need to take it personally to raise my children in an upright way, I also need to be not so involved personally.  What I mean by this is that because I have a vested interest in my children's well being, I can get all wrapped up about teaching them some lessons in life.  Especially the in their teenage years I often fool myself to think they're grown ups when they're still just a children (other than physically) and sets a higher expectation on myself and can get pretty hard on them.  Today's passage teaches me such an approach can simply provoke anger in my children leaving them zero learning capacity.  Instead I need to discipline and teach them with instructions from the Lord through His word.

[A]  Even though I may be emotionally all worked up, I must balance that with God's wisdom and instructions such that the plumb line they need to is not my standards but God's own standards.

[P] Dear God, please make me a father who would bring my children up to follow God closely throughout their lives through ups and downs, successes and failures because of my pointing them to Your instructions and disciplines.  May they fear You and align their lives no matter how far they may drift away from You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Raising the Bar of Conversations

[S] Ephesians 5:3-4 --
 ³But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints;
 ⁴and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.

[O] Following yesterday's passage, Paul continues on about raising the standard of excellence for Christ followers.  This begins by avoiding immoral or impure thoughts in our hearts, not even mentioning any of that either.  Whenever we gathering around with other Christ followers we need to remember this passage of being very careful of what we talk about for fun or not because Paul's clear about one thing that we should give thanks to God and others instead of exchanging of unfitting words with one another.  This is very easy to do, however, and so must be careful not to fall into that mode.

[A] Verse 3 talks about how Christ followers must keep up the standard of their reputation and also to keep their conversations clean.  It's not that we have to use filthy or offensive words to fall into this category but also when we gossip and talk down on others we are guilty of what Paul charges us not to do.  I need to have more of an appreciation of people around me and to praise them with kind words.

[P] Dear God, please fill my heart with more gratitude about everything and everyone you've put around my life.  I want nothing more than the thankfulness come out of my mouth when I'm around others.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Every Joint Counts

[S] Ephesians 4:16 -- 
¹⁵but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
 ¹⁶from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

[O] In order for my whole body to function properly in its tip-top shape, every joint in my body must function at their best condition.  There is no such thing as a more important joint when it comes to the well being of the whole body.  Paul uses that analogy to explain the same effect in the body of Christ which is knit together by multiple parts connected by the joints in order to interact in unison to function as a whole body.  Here also, there is no joint that is more important than another when it comes to the benefit of the overall body.  The part about "proper working of each individual part" causing the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love provided an in-depth perspective of the vision for our small group ministry.  No great plan or execution of such a plan is not going to be the answer to a building up of our ministry but the key lies with each individuals "properly working" to build up the body in love.  This may be a bit vague but ultimately we need to build up the leadership group such that they can nurture and engage each member into the "whole body" of our church.  This should be the driving factor more so than the weekly meeting format itself, or which materials to use for discussion.

[A] This is another guidance from God for the small group ministry's vision.  This chapter's always been inspiring for mobilizing the community in the right direction and this passage is not an exception.  I am going to make "each individuals working properly => causes the growth of the body => building up in love" one of the pillars for building up our small group ministry.

[P] Dear God, thank You so much for continuing to pour into my heart Your vision for our ministry.  It's been a little discouraging moment due to some changes in the leadership group but there's never a shortage of Your wisdom and guidance for me to move on with energy and strength.  So I carry onward in Your Spirit's leadership as I pray in Your name.  Amen.

From the Bottom Looking Up

[S] Ecclesiastes 4:10,12b --
 ¹⁰For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.
 ¹²... A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.

[O] As a Korean proverb goes -- Even monkeys fall off the trees at times -- we are all bound to fall down here and there no matter how hard and carefully we try to live.  So, having companions close by to lend a hand when I'm facing up flat on my back would be a good thing.  And when I can be the one lending a hand to my friend who's facing up would be a good thing also.  This type of a friendship is what's going to strengthen the fabric of the community I belong to by lifting one another up because as verse 12 closes, such a community will withstand many challenges without giving in easily.

[A] In order to be such a friend to others around me, I need to build more margin around my life such that I will have some room to shift over to those who's fallen down.  My life these days seem to be filled to the brim with so many events to tend to and so very difficult to be an effective "uplifter" for my friends who may be in need of my hand.

[P] Dear God, I pray for wisdom to balance my life better to build more margin around it because I want to be a strength to those around me who may have found themselves facing up from the bottom.  I pray that I would also find friends who may be the one lifting me up from the bottom.  With such striving, please provide a warm and "strong" fabric of community where me and my family may attach ourselves into for maturing in Christ.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

People Need Vision

[S] Proverbs 29:18 --
     ¹⁸Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained,
         But happy is he who keeps the law.  (NASB)
 ¹⁸ When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild.
      But whoever obeys the law is joyful.  (NLT)

[O] The central force which unites people's hearts comes from a single vision which is caught by the people.  Without it people will run wild without any common boundaries.  So in such a state all the energy of the people are drained by trying to normalize everyone's diverse views and opinions of who is right or wrong.  Let's face it, there is no one person who is right all the time so what good is it to try and persuade and influence each other about why certain ways are better for the people?  Even if that seems right, implementation of such a way is a whole new can of worms and there most likely be a better and improved idea by another person.  So, while this is not about living a complacent life, I do believe the source of our ideas and improvements must come from God's vision.  My role should be the conduit of His vision to the people which leaves room for God to move people's hearts and unite them to exercise their energy in a single direction joyfully.

[A] Having spent last 10 months of "kick starting" a small group ministry from ground zero at my church had been a good challenge which was very much anticipated, by the way. I could write a book on different methodologies and what to do, don't do, but this verse gave me an insight to be the conduit of God's vision to the leadership group which is being formed.  More so that the how to's, let God's vision inspire them and unite to move forward.

[P] Dear God, grant me Your wisdom to understand Your vision so I may pass it on to the small group leadership group.  And I pray that You would encourage them and unite them to carry forward this ministry which You are at work.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Same Mind, One Voice

[S] Romans 15:5-6 --
 ⁵Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus,
 ⁶so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[O] The ultimate goal of godly perseverance and encouragement is to have the same mind in Christ to glorify God.  According to the standards of our society the goal is to be successful which translates into some measurement of quantity such as position, power, or money.  But God's standards are measured by how close my life will follow in accordance with Christ Jesus' principles which He Himself displayed for us during His ministry on earth.  We talk about casting visions and living them out, but unless it is founded on a group of followers with the same mind and with one voice glorify God, that vision is only going to be a dream that may never fulfill.

[A] Any ministry within a local church need to build on top of this principle of same mind and one voice and achieving that requires a common understanding of a certain chain of commands because without it, we will be spending a lot of time trying to figure that out instead of impacting God's ministry itself.  I'm convicted to start praying for this to take place within our small group ministry.

[P] Dear God, please grant the same mind with all the leaders of the small group ministry according to Christ Jesus.  I am not going to worry about all the other logistics for now and focus on this principle to take place.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

No Charter Flights Into Heaven

[S] Romans 14:11-12 --
 ¹¹For it is written,
         "AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME,
         AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD." 
 ¹²So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.  

[O] I always envisioned a mass of people worshiping God from this passage with every knee bowed with one voice praising Him.  But today a whole new picture came to mine.  When Jesus returns to give His final account of this world, each one of us will have to stand up on our own.  There won't be any group charter flights into God's Kingdom for example.  Based on this Paul writes further about how there is no need for us to judge one another now because in the end (literally) we will all have to stand before God individually to give our own story.  In light of this, I would like to start practicing bowing and praising before God all on my own.  I want to practice to make it "perfect."

[A] Even now when I worship God or to live out my own walk with God, I must stand up on my own not influenced by what others are doing.  I like to enter into a deeper worship during Sunday worship services regardless of the circumstance or environment.

[P] Dear God, may my knee bow before You and my tongue sing praise to You wherever I am and whoever I'm with.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Prepare Plans, then Make War

[S] Proverbs 20:18 -- ¹⁸Prepare plans by consultation,
         And make war by wise guidance.

[O] As a soccer coach I would never show up to a game unprepared as I would work on the lineup, figure out who's injured or won't be at the game, and study about the opposing team to better strategize for a strong and successful game.  This verse explains how critical it is to prepare for war beforehand making plans by consulting experts of war, sources of intelligence against the enemy, and with the military commanders.  What areas in my life am I not making proper plans by consulting with the right people for wise guidance?  I can so easily be in this place I must constantly ask this question.

[A] I can feel the sense of urgency as we come to our first year mark of the small group ministry at our church because in many ways we are settling into moving further on however along with that momentum, our enemy is hard at work alongside us, too.  I'm realizing this is more than just running a program but an act of war against the enemy's schemes.  I will need wise guidance and that's going to come from the Word as well as others who's expert at doing this.

[P] Dear God, please show me the consultants to receive wise guidance as I engage in this war in the battlefield of small groups at our church.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.