“For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) The murderer was condemned to life in prison. Then one day something amazing happened. The guard came and opened the jail cell. “You are free to go. Someone else is

“Jesus answered: Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?’” (John 14:9). The disciples had been with Jesus for three years. They’d seen miracles – dead men came back to life, the sick were healed, and water was turned to wine. These were but a few of

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Cor 9:8). Have you ever been given an assignment at work that was beyond your perceived ability? When I was in my late

“I will bend Judah as I bend my bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and make you like a warrior’s sword” (Zech 9:13). In the early church there was an emphasis on developing a heart toward God. This was the Hebraic way. The

“The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan” (Josh 5:12). God calls you to eat from the fruit of your own work. During the exodus from Egypt, Israel had to eat

“But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name’” (Acts 9:15-16). Sometimes we can place the idea of calling too much on the

“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Col 3:2-4). Hello, my name is Dr. Bengel. “I am a Christian, masquerading as a dentist. What is your name?” I laughed as I met this

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5-6). Have you ever heard someone say, “He was before his time?” There are many examples of people who invented a product or service in a time when the

“So I have caused you to be despised and humiliated before all the people, because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality in matters of the law” (Mal 2:9). My work, My way – When you and I live in this world without Christ we live a life just as Esau lived

“Now the donkeys belonging to Saul’s father Kish were lost” (1 Sam 9:3). God used adversity to call the first king of Israel. In 1 Samuel 9 and 10, we find Saul working in the family business,employed by his father, Kish. In Bible times, donkeys represented trade and commerce, for they were the primary means

“LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance” (Ps 16:5-6). There is absolutely no place for competitiveness in ministry or marketplace activity if you understand God’s view of receiving. The Scripture

When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. The LORD’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down and he died there beside the ark of God (2 Samuel 6:6-8). David was the

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. (Gal 2:20). “There’s nothing wrong with you that a good funeral won’t solve,” I said to the woman. “I’ll even send you flowers!” She smiled in response. I was speaking figuratively to the woman who was stressing out about

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” (2 Cor 4:7). What would happen if Jesus took your place for a year in your workplace? Let’s consider some hypothetical things that He might do. He would do His work with excellence.

“The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children.” (Ex 12:37-38). How does God prepare someone for big assignments? Consider the mission given to Moses. He was called to deliver an entire nation from slavery. The assignment was to bring six hundred thousand men,

“Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”(Ps 82:3-4). God raises up leaders to take on causes that are much greater than themselves. However, these causes are often first birthed as a result of

“I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name .”(Isa 45:3). When God takes you to a depth of soul experience be alert to new truths and new perspectives. During these times

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Prov. 3:5-6). George Mueller was a pastor in England during the nineteenth century who knew what it meant to live a life that was focused on knowing

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving (Col 3:23-25). I sat across the table from the well known seminary professor and

He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven (Ps 107:29-30). Imagine for a moment you began an exciting sailing adventure. You’ve been trained to navigate and sail on the ocean and be ready should

“Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him (Mark 6:3). In 2005, a movie entitled The Passion was released that chronicled the last twenty-four hours of Jesus’ life. During a flashback scene, Jesus was

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints? (Eph 1:18-19). I walked up to the man and said, “Hello, my name is Os. What’s yours?” His name was

The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it (Gen. 2:15). Imagine for a moment that Jesus has just completed his three years of training with the disciples. He has been crucified and is now commissioning the twelve to go into the

“You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something” (Psalm 139: 15). (Msg) If you are going to discover how God wants to use your life and work, you must know why you

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Cor 5:17). A mulligan is a golf term which allows a player to play a second shot off the first tee if the first shot is poor. It’s a second chance to get a fresh

Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face

So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand (Exod. 4:20). When Moses was called by God from his forty years in the desert to lead the people out of Egypt, God first changed his paradigm about

May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us — yes, establish the work of our hands (Ps 90:17). Martin Luther brought the word of God back to the people. Today, God is bringing the work of God back to the people. God never intended