"Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." - John 6:27
I was watching a television program about one of the battles in the South Pacific during World War II. I was not in that battle but tried to identify with the men shown in the film.
As I watched, it brought to mind an official document I'd seen several years before. This document analyzed the battle from the moment they hit the beach until the island was secured. When I got to the last paragraph, I read something that made me ill. In fact, I became so shaky I got out of my chair and sat down on the floor.
The government's conclusion was that the battle had accomplished nothing of strategic importance. It had been a mistake. I could see in my mind those hundreds of slain Marines, as well as hundreds of young Japanese soldiers, who had died in vain in a battle that didn't really matter.
Right then, the Lord brought a verse to my mind:
"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain" (1 Corinthians 15:58).
It may seem to you today that you're banging your head against a brick wall, that nothing is going right in the Sunday school or women's ministry or men's brotherhood. But let me encourage you to stay at it.
When you put in your eight hours on the job, having worked as unto the Lord, it is not in vain. When you reach out to your friends and family with the gospel, even if they refuse to listen, it is not in vain. Why? Because the Bible says that whatever you are doing for Christ matters.
REPEAT: Everything you do for Jesus Christ and HIS KINGDOM matters!
Prayer
"Lord, I rejoice that because of my relationship with You, even the most insignificant task has meaning and purpose. Amen."
Our labor in the Lord, Jesus is never in vain ---- never forget this!
I encourage you TODAY to dedicate everything you do to our blessed Lord, Jesus Christ ... who gave His life that we might have LIFE in HIM!.
Blest Be The Tie That Binds
Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.
Before our Father’s throne
We pour our ardent prayers;
Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one
Our comforts and our cares.
We share each other’s woes,
Our mutual burdens bear;
And often for each other flows
The sympathizing tear.
When we asunder part,
It gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart,
And hope to meet again.
This glorious hope revives
Our courage by the way;
While each in expectation lives,
And longs to see the day.
From sorrow, toil and pain,
And sin, we shall be free,
And perfect love and friendship reign
Through all eternity.
Daily Smile:
While leading a tour of kindergarten students through our hospital, I overheard a conversation between one little girl and an x-ray technician.
"Have you ever broken a bone?" he asked.
"Yes," the girl replied.
"Did it hurt?"
"No."
"Really? Which bone did you break?"
"My sister's arm."
In The News:
Atheists Ask Obama to Ditch 'So Help Me God,' Bible in Presidential Oath
When President Barack Obama takes the oath of office for the second time on Jan. 21, 2013, an atheist group wants him to do so without mentioning God and without a Bible, the Christian Post reports. Following Obama's re-election, the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent him a letter asking him to reject the way "this country politicizes religion." FFRF attorney Andrew L. Seidel wrote: "When you stand to reaffirm your oath, do so using the language of the Founders. Eliminate the religious verbiage. While you're at it, why not place your hand on the Constitution instead of a Bible?" The FFRF argued that the words "so help me God" are not prescribed by the Constitution, nor is a requirement for the president to place his hand on a Bible when taking oath. "[Obama's second term] is a chance to do something that no president in recent memory has done: reach out to secular Americans," FFRF wrote. "In the past, that might have been politically costly. But this recent election shows that it will be politically costly not to reach out to secular America. We are the future."
Christian Church Vandalized in Jerusalem in Spate of Attacks
Calvary Baptist Church in Jerusalem, led by an Arab Israeli Christian pastor, is the latest congregation to be hit in a string of vandalism incidents to hit Christian holy sites in Israel this year, ASSIST News Service reports. On Nov. 12, "the sign pointing people to the church was defaced with white paint with 'Justice' written on the wall next to the sign," said pastor Steven Khoury, head of Calvary Baptist Church. In September, vandals burned a door of the Trappist Monastery in Latrun and spray-painted anti-Christian graffiti with the words "Jesus is a monkey," Khoury said. Last month, the Church of the Dormition Abbey on Mt. Zion, near Jerusalem's Old City, was defaced with graffiti that included the words "price tag." According to Khoury, church members are taking precautions to ensure than no further attacks are carried out against the church. He said security cameras were being installed and round-the-clock watch groups would patrol the church building in the interim. Police are currently investigating the matter, and Khoury emphasized it was important for Israel to prosecute the perpetrators under its hate crime statutes to demonstrate that defacing holy sites is a serious offense under the law as well as the country's democratic values.
Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds
Is like to that above.
Before our Father’s throne
We pour our ardent prayers;
Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one
Our comforts and our cares.
We share each other’s woes,
Our mutual burdens bear;
And often for each other flows
The sympathizing tear.
When we asunder part,
It gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart,
And hope to meet again.
This glorious hope revives
Our courage by the way;
While each in expectation lives,
And longs to see the day.
From sorrow, toil and pain,
And sin, we shall be free,
And perfect love and friendship reign
Through all eternity.
Daily Smile:
While leading a tour of kindergarten students through our hospital, I overheard a conversation between one little girl and an x-ray technician.
"Have you ever broken a bone?" he asked.
"Yes," the girl replied.
"Did it hurt?"
"No."
"Really? Which bone did you break?"
"My sister's arm."
In The News:
Atheists Ask Obama to Ditch 'So Help Me God,' Bible in Presidential Oath
When President Barack Obama takes the oath of office for the second time on Jan. 21, 2013, an atheist group wants him to do so without mentioning God and without a Bible, the Christian Post reports. Following Obama's re-election, the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent him a letter asking him to reject the way "this country politicizes religion." FFRF attorney Andrew L. Seidel wrote: "When you stand to reaffirm your oath, do so using the language of the Founders. Eliminate the religious verbiage. While you're at it, why not place your hand on the Constitution instead of a Bible?" The FFRF argued that the words "so help me God" are not prescribed by the Constitution, nor is a requirement for the president to place his hand on a Bible when taking oath. "[Obama's second term] is a chance to do something that no president in recent memory has done: reach out to secular Americans," FFRF wrote. "In the past, that might have been politically costly. But this recent election shows that it will be politically costly not to reach out to secular America. We are the future."
Christian Church Vandalized in Jerusalem in Spate of Attacks
Calvary Baptist Church in Jerusalem, led by an Arab Israeli Christian pastor, is the latest congregation to be hit in a string of vandalism incidents to hit Christian holy sites in Israel this year, ASSIST News Service reports. On Nov. 12, "the sign pointing people to the church was defaced with white paint with 'Justice' written on the wall next to the sign," said pastor Steven Khoury, head of Calvary Baptist Church. In September, vandals burned a door of the Trappist Monastery in Latrun and spray-painted anti-Christian graffiti with the words "Jesus is a monkey," Khoury said. Last month, the Church of the Dormition Abbey on Mt. Zion, near Jerusalem's Old City, was defaced with graffiti that included the words "price tag." According to Khoury, church members are taking precautions to ensure than no further attacks are carried out against the church. He said security cameras were being installed and round-the-clock watch groups would patrol the church building in the interim. Police are currently investigating the matter, and Khoury emphasized it was important for Israel to prosecute the perpetrators under its hate crime statutes to demonstrate that defacing holy sites is a serious offense under the law as well as the country's democratic values.
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