Serving One Another Archives - My Manna

It is a Contradiction!

My Manna — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 22:00:00 +0000

“After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded” (John 13:5).

Your boss has assigned you a task!
Come up with a creative solution to a problem that has been costing the company money.

You tackle work at night and on weekends doing the needed research.
Your boss is enthusiastic about your proposal.

Later, in a company-wide meeting, the president gives your boss credit for the solution.
You find it increasingly difficult to continue serving your boss faithfully.

Serving people who have wounded us is a challenge.
Jesus overcame that challenge on the night-

He was arrested, accused, and sentenced to die.
He had gathered with His disciples to celebrate the Passover when He took a towel and a basin of water and began to wash their feet.

In that group of 12 was Judas!
– a thief and generally disagreeable sort, whom Jesus knew was about to betray him (John 13:1-6).

Judas left the meeting early to arrange the betrayal of Jesus-
– but not before Jesus washed his feet,
– along with those of the faithful eleven who remained.

The next time God asks you to serve someone you would rather not-
– remember how Jesus washed the feet of an unlovely man on the road to Calvary.

It is a contradiction to be a true Christian and not humble!

(PR)

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Your small sacrifices

MyManna — Thu, 14 Dec 2017 22:00:03 +0000

One day, as Mahatma Ghandi climbed on board a train-
– one of his shoes slipped off and fell to the track below.
As he bent to retrieve it, the train lurched forward and began to move.
Ghandi tried to grab his shoe, but missed.
He stood there for a moment watching his shoe slowly fade into the distance.
Then to the shock of everyone around him-
– he quietly took off his other shoe and threw it so it landed just to the side of the shoe already on the ground.
When asked why in the world he would throw away his other shoe also-
Ghandi responded:
“The poor man who finds the shoe lying on the track will now have a pair he can use.”
Have you ever given something away that you really hadn’t planned to?
Maybe, like Ghandi, it was a possession.
Or did you give your time, your talents, your money?
Your small sacrifices might be huge blessings for someone else.
Perhaps you could-
– drive a friend to a doctor’s appointment,
– invite someone to church, or
– teach a Sunday School class.
There are many opportunities around you where you can be a blessing to others!
Ask the Lord for opportunities where you can be a blessing to others.
And thank Him for the blessings He has given to you.
(PA)

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It is a Contradiction!

MyManna — Sat, 28 Oct 2017 22:00:55 +0000

“After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded” (John 13:5).
Your boss has assigned you a task!
Come up with a creative solution to a problem that has been costing the company money.
You tackle work at night and on weekends doing the needed research.
Your boss is enthusiastic about your proposal.
Later, in a company-wide meeting, the president gives your boss credit for the solution.
You find it increasingly difficult to continue serving your boss faithfully.
Serving people who have wounded us is a challenge.
Jesus overcame that challenge on the night-
He was arrested, accused, and sentenced to die.
He had gathered with His disciples to celebrate the Passover when He took a towel and a basin of water and began to wash their feet.
In that group of 12 was Judas!
– a thief and generally disagreeable sort, whom Jesus knew was about to betray him (John 13:1-6).
Judas left the meeting early to arrange the betrayal of Jesus-
– but not before Jesus washed his feet,
– along with those of the faithful eleven who remained.
The next time God asks you to serve someone you would rather not-
– remember how Jesus washed the feet of an unlovely man on the road to Calvary.
It is a contradiction to be a true Christian and not humble!
(PA)

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Spiritual gifts

MyManna — Wed, 25 Oct 2017 22:00:30 +0000

“And there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone” (1 Corinthians 12:6).
What are the best spiritual gifts for a believer to have?
It all depends.
If I am having a difficult time sharing my faith with someone, and you come along and have been gifted as an evangelist, then that is the best gift at that particular moment.
But then let’s say I am trying to understand the meaning of a particular passage of Scripture, and God has given you the gift of teaching.
For you to come along could be a great benefit to me.
Then again, let’s say that I am undertaking a complex project, and I need help.
What I really need is someone with the gift of helps or administrations.
Or, let’s say that I’m lying in a hospital bed, and I’m discouraged.
I need healing or someone to come and help me see that God is still in control of my life.
Each one of these gifts is important-
– as God has distributed them.
We make a big mistake when we think some gifts are of greater importance than others.
They all have their place.
And God has given them as He has chosen.
Therefore, we need to pray, “Lord, what are my gifts? Help me to discover them. Help me to develop them. Help me use them.”
One day when you stand before God-
– you will be held accountable for what He called you to do.
And one day-
He will reward you for how faithful you were with what He gave you.
(PA)

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Serve each other!

MyManna — Fri, 18 Aug 2017 22:00:07 +0000

“Whoever serves is to do so as one show is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ”.1 Peter 4:11.
It’s not easy asking for help!
Yet as we age…
– and simple tasks become more difficult…
– it becomes increasingly important for you to ask for help from others.
For some-
The humbling experience of requesting assistance is too much.
You may even know people who forego things they enjoy or need to do because they’d rather not appear weak!
However-
Consider this:
When you allow someone to serve you, it brings glory to God.
It is a blessing to serve each other!
And if you don’t let others serve you-
– you really are depriving them of that blessing!
Also-
God loves to see us serve each other.
Romans 14:17-18 teaches us to serve with “righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.”
As important as it is for you to serve others-
– it is also important to allow others to serve you!
This is how the Church was designed to function!
If you are in need of help today-
Pray for God to give you the courage to ask someone for assistance…
– so that they may be blessed by God!
– and that He may be glorified!!
(PA)

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Lasting Impression

MyManna — Mon, 15 May 2017 22:00:28 +0000

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11.

Each school year a fifth-grade teacher assigned her students a very special writing assignment.

She asked them to write a nice sentence about each classmate.
It could be something they liked about the person or something they thought the person did well.

The teacher then went line by line and put together a list for each student of all the nice words their classmates had written.
When this special teacher retired, many of her former students, who are now adults, came to her retirement party.

But they carried with them more than just good fifth-grade memories.

One by one, each student took out faded, well-worn sheets of paper…the treasured lists of encouragement.
One woman in her 20s told the teacher that whenever she felt down, she would open her scrapbook and read those words.

A 40-year-old man admitted he carried his list with him in his wallet.

Those positive words left a powerful, lasting impression!
Have you ever had someone say something nice that boosted your spirits or heard a kind word that made you smile?
Maybe you know someone who lives alone.

Imagine how a timely phone call to see how they are would help.

Perhaps writing a note to a friend who is ill might boost their spirits.

There’s so much you can do and say today to encourage those around you with the love of Christ!
Thank God for those timely, positive words people have said to you.

And ask Him for opportunities where you can encourage others today.

(PA)

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Elders, Be Blessed!

MyManna — Thu, 17 Nov 2016 22:00:48 +0000

“Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.” Genesis 21:5.

Many of us have retired already or are planning to in the near future.
For most people, retirement is viewed as a time to relax, reflect, and enjoy the fruits of a lifetime of labour.

But consider that many of the greatest heroes of the Bible were just getting started when most of us retire!

God established His covenant with Abraham when he was 99 years old.

After a life of hard work and great success, imagine God telling you-
“Okay, now it’s time for your life’s work to really get started.”

Similarly, Moses was around 80 years old when he led the Israelites out of Egypt.
How many of us could lead a nation of millions through the desert for the next 40 years?

Believe it or not, the concept of retirement isn’t found anywhere in the Bible.

As Christians, you and I are called to be on the firing line with the Lord our whole life on earth!

And today-
God may be calling you to do something as simple as-
– encouraging your neighbour or
– making your famous chocolate chip cookies for a bake sale or
– writing a book.
Perhaps He is even calling you to mentor younger members of your church.

Whatever God is calling you to do as a retiree and as a Christian-
He is calling you to continue to serve Him during this season of life,
– using the time He’s given you to make a difference for Him.

Pray that God would help you use the time He’s given you in retirement to serve others-
– for their good and
– for His glory!

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Caring

MyManna — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 22:30:22 +0000

Few of us can say that we have never been ashamed when it came to our attention that we failed to care for someone whom we should have cared for.

Whether our unawareness was innocent and inadvertent or the result of negligence-
– it’s painful to find out that we’ve failed to care.

So we’d do well to be more inquisitive when it comes to others’ need for our caring.

Caring is a privilege.
Caring for others would not be possible if we had not been endowed with some very special gifts.

While certain animals “care” for their young in one sense, the kind of caring that human beings are capable of requires a set of remarkable powers.

It’s a privilege to have been endowed with these powers, and if we ever catch ourselves complaining about having to use them, then we need to adjust our attitudes.

Duty is simply the other side of privilege.

Caring is a pleasure.
Out of all the happinesses, or perhaps we should say joys, that human beings can experience, none is more exquisite than that of caring.

And I don’t mean simply the sentiment of caring-
I mean the act of caring.

The words “It is more blessed to give than to receive” encapsulate-
– one of the most important truths that our minds can grasp.

It would behoove us to quit paying lip service to that maxim and start learning that life really does work that way.
Caring is a protection.
This is a story about four people:

Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it.
Everybody was sure Somebody would do it.
Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it.
Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job.
Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it.
It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when actually Nobody asked Anybody.

This little story applies so much to Christians today.

If not us, who?
If not now, when?
If not here, where?

Nobody is getting the work of God done because everybody thinks somebody is going to do it, when anybody could have done it, but nobody did.

Indifference, which is a failure to care, is a horrible sin.

I don’t believe George Bernard Shaw was overstating the case when he said:

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them-

– but to be indifferent to them; that’s the essence of inhumanity.”

Not caring for those around us (especially those to whom we have some special responsibility, such as our families) is a fate worse than death.

Yes, it costs us to care.
Yes, sacrifices may be required.
Yes, it may come to the point where caring for someone even demands that we lay down our lives for them.

Whatever the price of caring may be-
– it is nowhere near the cost of not caring.

We have such a grand opportunity in these last Days to witness with the Gospel.
As we approach the End Times, more and more people are hungry for the truth.

Sadly, they’re being indoctrinated by atheists, heretics and nuts who believe in alien abductions, some even claiming to be Christ.

The need is great for Bible-believing Christians to do the work of God.

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Self-serving!

MyManna — Wed, 26 Oct 2016 22:30:56 +0000

“The LORD of Hosts says this: Make fair decisions. Show faithful love and compassion to one another.” Zechariah 7:9.
When our relationship with God is spiritually healthy-
– the people around us will know it by the way we treat them.
Too often we’re like the Israelites in Zechariah’s time-
– involved in religious activities that are more about ourselves than truly worshiping God.
God spoke through the prophet Zechariah to expose His people’s sinful hearts-
– as they mourned and fasted during an annual festival that commemorated the
destruction of the Temple.
God declared straightforwardly that their pious observances were-
– more about pleasing themselves
– than worshiping Him.
If the most important relationship we have has turned selfish and sinful-
– other areas of our lives will be affected.
Our relationships with the people around us will become self-serving and dysfunctional.
Nearly every prophet in the Bible, as well as our Lord Jesus-
– made a direct connection between loving God and loving people.
Worship God wholeheartedly, with selflessness and integrity-
– and His compassion will flow through you to others!

“Father, may my love for You be demonstrated in the ways-
I love the people You have placed in my life.”

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Attention

MyManna — Sat, 03 Sep 2016 23:00:32 +0000

Mary set out and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah-
– where she entered Zachariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting-
– the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Then she exclaimed with a loud cry:
“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is your offspring! How could this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For you see, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped for joy inside me! Blessed is she who has believed that what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled!” Luke 1:39-45.
Mary was a maze of emotions on her hurried trek to Elizabeth’s house.
She was going with congratulations on her cousin’s pregnancy.
But to be honest, she needed someone to talk to.
Elizabeth was one of those people who would really care.
We Christians are actually pretty good at responding to a crisis-
– throwing our arms around a hurting friend, calling to check on someone who needs a listening ear.
But too often when someone-
– encounters a victory in her life,
– finds the man of her dreams, or
– takes a new job that doubles her salary,
– our congratulations are cloaked and guarded.
It seems we’re better at mourning with those who mourn than-
– at rejoicing with those who rejoice.
Try going into a new day with your eyes open for the people you’ll encounter at the store, the office, the school outing, wherever you’re headed.
Give someone your full attention today.

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