The 12 Days of Thanks Giving: Day 10

Day 10:The Gospel

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me

to preach the gospel to the poor: He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”

Gospel [gos-puh l] noun

1. the teachings of Jesus and the apostles; the Christian revelation.

2. the story of Christ’s life and teachings, especially as contained in the first four books of the New Testament, namely Matthew,

Mark, Luke, and John.

3. (usually initial capital letter) any of these four books.

4. something regarded as true and implicitly believed:

5. a doctrine regarded as of prime importance:

6. glad tidings, especially concerning salvation and the kingdom of God as announced to the world by Christ.

Many people believe the truth of the Gospel into our everyday trials and tribulations and our greatest challenges and hardships. Let the truth of the Gospel transform your life from day one until Jesus calls you home.

Give Thanks for the Gospel

I am so thankful that the Gospel transform your daily life? Perhaps we can try one of the following suggestions this week.

To offer tangible help to the brokenhearted. We can be the hands and feet of Jesus by taking a meal to a grief-stricken person, offering time to listen, sending a card, or calling.
Pray for those caught in sin or addictions. While we cannot force people to give up drugs or alcohol, we can fervently pray that they will be convicted of their sin and see their need to be set free.
Volunteer our time. Many churches and ministries need help with their programs. Consider serving in a food pantry, volunteering at a pro-life clinic, teaching a Sunday school class, or working at a homeless shelter.

More Gospel

1 Thessalonians A Life of Faith, Part 3: The Gospel a Bible study by Mary Kane

Knowing Who I am in Christ an article by Joyce Meyer

Comment

Please leave a comment below in the Speak Your Mind section on what God teaches you today about gospel.

gospel. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/gospel (accessed: November 24, 2014).

1 Thessalonians A Life of Faith, Part 7: Approved by God

“You have been approved,” is a very exciting phrase. Hearing that phrase boosts one’s self esteem. It is wonderful to weighed in the balance and found acceptable, trustworthy, and capable.

Throughout the course of a life time, we have been approved for college loans, mortgages, car loans and college admissions. These approvals, however, fall infinitely short in comparison to being approved by God.

What has God approved us to do? According to 1 Thessalonians 2, we have been approved to communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world. Since we have been life of faith, we have a responsibility to be ready in season and out of season to give a reason for the great hope we have. It is an honor and a privilege to be entrusted by the God of the universe with the Gospel.

We (me and YOU) have been approved by God. To do part 7 of A Life of Faith, please click on the link below.

A Life of Faith Part 7, Approved By God

1 Thessalonians A Life of Faith, Part 6: The Blessing of Suffering

God has given us many blessings, the greatest of which is the gift of life. We can choose to live a life of selfishness and greed, following after our own desires, or we can live a blessings: grace, joy, peace, love, fruit, ministry, and yes, suffering.

At first, it may seem as if suffering and blessing have no point of commonality, but as we shall learn, suffering leads to blessing if we will only trust the Lord. The present hardship you are experiencing can be re-purposed by God into blessing. Blessing from suffering … what kind of God has that kind of power? The Great I AM. Living blessing of suffering.

Please click on the link below to down load Part 6 of A Life of Faith.

A Life of Faith, Part 6: The Blessing of Suffering

1 Thessalonians A Life of Faith, Part 5: Sound Forth

I am old enough to remember the thrill of receiving a letter in the mail. I had several pen-pals (“virtual friends” of a bygone era) when I was growing up. I invested heavily in stationary, sealing wax and stamps.

Waiting for the mailman to hand-deliver the mail was an event that marked each day like the ringing of town church bells. I anxiously awaited each delivery, looking for handwritten messages from my frien

ds. God has also given us a message, a handwritten love letter delivered down through the ages from papyrus to paper. When we read and receive God’s missives, He expects us to sound forth His truths to those around us and to the coming generations. The Good News is a message of hope and salvation for every tribe, tongue and nation. Let His Word sound forth.

To do Part 5 of A Life of Faith, please click on the link below.

A Life of Faith Part 5; Sound Forth

1 Thessalonians: A Life of Faith

1 Thessalonians: A Life of Faith is an interactive Bible study series devoted to deepening your walk with God. Through repeated readings, in-depth analysis of key words and personal study questions you will draw closer to God and be transformed by the truth of His Word. Watch your life of faith will grow as you immerse your heart and mind in scripture. Start your journey today by clicking on 1 Thessalonians: A Life of Faith, Part 1 link below.

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Grace and Peace, Part 1

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Faith, Hope and Love, Part 2

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: The Gospel, Part 3

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: The Name, Part 4

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Sound Forth, Part 5

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: The Blessing of Suffering, Part 6

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Approved by God, Part 7

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: From Cherish to Charge, Part 8

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Walk Worthy, Part 9

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: The Word, Part 10

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1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: God’s Co-Worker, Part 11

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Stand Firm, Part 12

1 Thessalonians, A life of Faith: Pray and Perfect, Part 13

1 Thessalonians, A life of Faith: More and More, Part 14

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Operation Sanctification, Part 15

1 Thessalonians, Life of Faith: The Quiet Life, Part 16

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Always with the Lord, Part 17

1 Thessalonians, A Life of Faith: Times and Seasons, Part 18

To Do-ers List: Always do Good

Day 6

To Do-ers List: Always do Good

15 “See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people.

16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying.”

1 Thessalonians 5:15

There was a saying when I was growing up, “It’s payback time.” Eye for an eye. Tooth for a tooth. If someone did something to you, you did it back to them and then some. It was the law of the street. One of the problems with paybacks, however, is they never end. The cycle of hatred churns and escalates.

Hatfield and McCoys.

Cain and Able.

Notre Dame and Michigan.

Do we even remember what we are fighting about?

God has a different idea.

Do good. Always do good. Instead of payback, pay-it-forward. Good for evil. Blessings replace cursing. Help instead of hate. Always do good.

Why?

Because that’s what God does; it’s who He is. It’s what He did for us. While we were yet sinners, Jesus died on the cross for us. We were enemies of God by our wicked works and He died for us. What if He had waited for us to do something GOOD until He did something good? He’d still be waiting while we spent eternity in hell.

What is good?

In the Greek, good translates as agathos, which means good, pleasant, agreeable, joyful, happy, honorable, upright, excellent. Part of the word means sacrifice. To always do good, we must
sacrifice our right to be angry, our right to be hurt, and our right to be bitter.
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It’s part of the abundant life.

This one is hard for me. Really hard. I learned and lived by the law of the street. I can payback like the rest of ’em. It’s a wonderful witness when you convey a rude gesture and have a fish sticker on the back of your mini-van. I still struggle with it today. Why? Pride. I’m better. I act better. I think better. How dare you do that to ME. It’s ugly and sinful. But, by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, I’m making progress.

Long time ago I came across the following maxim:

Satan repays good with evil;

Man repays evil with evil and good with good;

God repays evil with good.

Always do good.

It’s a choice we make … to love instead of hate, to bless instead of curse, to always do good. We were created in the image of God. Like Father, like daughter. He is good; therefore, we must always do good.

For Today:

Today will be tough. Look for ways to do good to those who aren’t good to you. Doing good to another can be a kind deed, graceful words, or prayerful thoughts. Look to do good to everyone, regardless of how they treat you. Do we always do good because others deserve it? No, we always do good because it’s the right thing to do.

Use the To-Doers List Study Guide or a journaling app to plan and journal your day.

To Do-ers List Journal Study Guide PDF

Days Lite: My Wonderful Life App free app from App Store.

For ideas on how to always do good, please check the resources below.

Overcoming Evil with Good

If you missed a few days, you can catch up by clicking the links below.

To Do-ers List, Day 1: Love God

To Do-ers List, Day 2: Love Others

To Do-ers List, Day 3: Pray ’bout Everything

To Do-ers List: Day 4: Walk by Faith

To Do-ers List: Day 5: Word in Me

Please take a moment to pray and ask God for His strength to do good to everyone you meet today (and the people you live with). Don’t forget to leave a comment in the comment section below. Please remember, Jane and I have been praying for you. Have a blessed day!

by Mary Kane

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