One Sunday morning after church as the family was driving home, Molly asked, “Mom, the preacher said that God was bigger than any of us. Is that really true?”

“Yes, He is!” answered her mother.

“Well, Mom,” she continued, “the preacher also said that God lives in us. Is that also true?”

“Yes,” admitted the mother.


“Well, then,” she asked rather confused, “why doesn’t He show through?”
How much of God is seen in our lives each day?

We speak of Him often, turn to Him quickly and rely on Him totally, but do we consult with Him continually?
When we make plans, we need to include Him. If we visit with a friend, we need to invite Him into the conversation. As we leave for a journey, we need to ask Him to travel with us. Throughout the day at work, we need to ask Him for His wisdom.

Perhaps if we consulted God for His advice in everything we do and were more conscious that His Spirit is actually within us, we would realize that He is bigger than we are and wants to “show through” us.

Prayer:  Our Father, we often talk of Your greatness but rarely show Your greatness. Help us to change! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today:  Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

An elderly lady asked a young child, “How do you do, my dear?”

“Fine, thank you,” came the reply.

There was a pause, and finally the lady asked, “Why don’t you ask me how I am doing?”

After thinking for a moment, the child replied, “You know, I don’t really care how you are doing!”

Demonstrating care for others is an important responsibility of the Christian. In fact, first century Christians were recognized by the saying, “My how they love one another!” Sadly, that is not always true today.

In His wisdom, God has connected all of us together, believers and nonbelievers. No one is self-sufficient or able to act independently of others and never require help from anyone. We must never think that we are ever excused from the responsibility of giving help to those in need.

We read in God’s Word that “we will reap whatever we sow.” As someone once said, “You can’t plant corn and expect to get a crop of watermelons.” Although we may not want to believe it, we will only get what we have planted. We see it in the laws of nature and we find it in the laws of God as well. Everything we do has predictable results. If we sow care, we can be assured of receiving care. Christians must always live God’s love.

Prayer: Help us, Father, to be alert to the needs of others. May we always show Your care to everyone. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:1-10  Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Alfred Adler is known as one of the “founding fathers” of modern psychology. He is remembered mostly for his analysis of the impact of birth order on personality and what he called his “Fourteen-Day Cure Plan.” He claimed that his plan could cure anyone of mental illness in just fourteen days if they would just do exactly as he told them to do.

One day a woman who was extremely depressed came to see him. He told her, “I can cure you of your depression in just fourteen days if you will follow my advice.”

“What do you want me to do?” she asked.

“If you will do one thing for someone else every day for fourteen days, at the end of that time your depression will be gone,” he told her.

She objected, “Why should I do something for someone else when no one ever does anything for me?”

Jokingly he responded, “Well, maybe it will take you twenty-one days.”

He knew that if she did something for someone she would be on her way toward improving her mental condition and “curing” her depression.

Paul said that we are to “share each others problems and troubles.” Christians must never develop an attitude that entertains the idea that we are excused from the task of helping others. It is sometimes difficult to think of “service before self.” But that is the way Jesus lived and died. As His disciples, can we do less?

Prayer: Lord, may we move from an attitude of self-centeredness to one of other-centeredness and see, hear, feel and meet the needs of others as You did. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

A soldier was assigned the responsibility of driving a senator from the airport to a military installation. Between the baggage claim area and the vehicle he noticed an elderly lady struggling to pull her suitcase behind her. He immediately went to her rescue and pulled the suitcase until they met her waiting family. He then paused to help a young mother secure her child in a stroller. After that he helped a man who was having a difficult time opening the door to the restroom.

Impressed, the senator asked, “How is it that you see so many people who need help and immediately go to their rescue?”

After a moment of silence he replied quietly, “During my tour of duty in Vietnam it was my job to clear minefields. I never knew if my next step would be my last. It was there that I learned to get the most out of every moment because, in life, it’s now or never.”

Paul summed it up this way: “Share each other’s troubles and problems because if you do so you will obey the law of Christ.” We, as Christians, have a responsibility to God and to anyone we know who is faced with a difficult situation that is beyond their ability to manage. It can be as simple as opening a door or as complex as helping them through the loss of a loved one.

The size of the problem does not matter to God. It is the willingness of His children to help those in need.

Prayer: We pray, Lord, for eyes that see the needs of others, ears that hear the cries of others, a heart that is open to others and hands that are willing to help others. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Henry was caught up in the gold rush. Shortly after arriving in California he found a mine, staked a claim and began digging. One day he found some ore, became excited, and believed he had struck it rich. He knew without any doubt that fame and fortune would soon be his.

He kept digging for a few weeks but eventually became discouraged and wanted to quit. Finally, a stranger approached him and offered to purchase his mine. In a moment of frustration he agreed to sell his rights for $11,000.00.

The new owner was excited about his purchase and began to dig where Henry stopped. And he kept digging for years and years. Eventually the Comstock Mine produced 340 million dollars of gold!

Wanting to encourage the church in Galatia, the Apostle Paul wrote, “So don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up for we will reap a harvest of blessings at the appropriate time.”

We have all faced those times in our lives when we become discouraged and distressed at doing what we believe is the right thing to do. No one offers a word of thanks or encouragement and there are no visible results to accompany our hard work. But Paul reminds us to keep on doing good and to trust God for the results. Giving in or giving up or giving out is the sure way to forfeit the blessing that God will award us for being faithful.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, may we be faithful to You in what You ask us to do. Protect us from allowing discouragement to destroy us and doubt to defeat us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

It was the first parent-teacher conference of the year. Mrs. Adams was a bit fearful as she entered her son’s classroom. Seated across from her son’s teacher she did not know what to expect.

“Mrs. Adams,” she began, “it is a delight to have your son as a student in my class. He is so good!”

“My son?” gasped Mrs. Adams. She was shocked beyond belief.

“Yes. Charles is a model student, “ the teacher continued.

Then, turning to her son, Mrs. Adams said to Charles, “Your teacher said that you are a good student. Even a model student. Why can’t you be good at home?”

“Well, Mom,” he replied slowly, “I only got so much goodness in me and I decided to use it in school.”

Goodness is an expression of “God-like-ness” that should reside inside of every believer and find its way outside of us in showing God’s grace to others. God-like-ness should come easily, naturally and constantly in our relationships with others.

As we become more of who God wants us to be, we must allow Him to move freely in us and through us. As we sense His love flooding into our hearts, showing God-like-ness should not be something we force ourselves to do. Rather, it is something we do without even thinking about it because we are a child of God.

Prayer: Help us, Heavenly Father, to express Your goodness to others as You have expressed it to us. May our goodness to others reflect Your love for them. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.

George went to confession on a regular basis. He was more faithful than most. But whenever he went his attitude expressed no feelings of remorse and his behavior showed no signs of repentance.

His priest was concerned that there was no sorrow for his sins or shame for his shortcomings. It hurt the priest because he loved George deeply. He had known him from his childhood.

One day in his frustration he said, “George, please go into the cathedral. Near the altar is a statue of Christ on the cross. Get down on your knees, look into the face of our Lord, raise your fist and say, ‘Jesus, you did all this for me but I don’t really care! It’s just not that important to me.’ Will you do that for me?”

Reluctantly he agreed and went into the cathedral. He slowly walked to the cross, dropped to his knees, looked up into the face of Jesus and began to repeat the words of the priest: “Jesus, you did all this for me...Jesus you did all this for me...Jesus you did all this for me.” Suddenly he began to sob loudly and shouted, “Jesus forgive me, please forgive me for my sins. Now that I see You, I really do care.”

Once we finally see and understand what Jesus did for us on the cross of Calvary our lives will change.

Prayer: Lord, may we come to that place in our lives where we will in some small way realize the depth of Your suffering, the price of our salvation and of the debt we owe You by the care we show others. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

A world famous surgeon was being interviewed by a television reporter for a series on the advances being made in the medical profession. Coming to the last question, the reporter asked,

"Tell me doctor, what is your greatest fear?"

After thinking for a moment, he replied, "That I may no longer feel the pains of my patients."
For him, feeling was essential if he was to help others. It moved him as he performed surgery on those in need of healing.

Sympathy is meant to stir us to service, to help us see the needs of others and to move us into action. Without sympathy we would do little to help the least, the last and the lost.

Paul said, "Share each others troubles and problems." Sympathy enables us to see the needs that others have and do something about them. It is the very foundation from which love and obedience to fulfill the commandments of Christ flows.

No Christian should ever feel that they are beyond the requirement of or excused from helping and praying for others. At all times and in all situations we are to be alert to the needs of others and respond as Jesus did.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes that we might see the things that You saw and be moved by the things that moved You and then do as You did in love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

=Lou Gehrig is remembered as the “Iron Man of Baseball.” At the height of his career he was stricken with a mysterious disease and realized that his days of playing baseball would soon be over.

Sharing the news with his wife, she courageously and comfortingly said, “Whatever it is, we’ll see it through together.”

Togetherness is the opposite of independence. It suggests one of the basic blessings of being a Christian: we are never alone and need not face life alone.

Jesus said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” What a comforting thought. The Creator and Sustainer of the universe is with us at all times. He did not create us and abandon us to struggle through life without Him. But there’s more.

No Christian should ever feel independent from other Christians and not in need of the help of others. Nor should Christians feel excused from the task of helping other brothers and sisters in their times of need. The body of Christ – the church – is only doing the work of Christ when it works together for the well being of other members of the body. Whatever the need – spiritual, physical, financial, emotional, educational, legal – if I know about it, I am obligated to Christ to do something about it.

Prayer: Father, let us humbly, in the Spirit of Christ, do His work in ministering to the needs of others in His name. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 6:2-3 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

A farmer in rural Georgia employed a man to work for him. The first day he gave him a job digging post holes. He explained his task carefully, taught him how to operate the equipment wisely and left him to dig the holes. He completed this project in record time. He was given the remainder of the day off as a reward.

The next day he gave him a much easier job: sorting good potatoes from bad ones. Half way through the morning he went to the farmer and said, “I’ve got to lie down. I have developed a horrible headache from making all of those decisions.”

Some individuals leave life to chance - taking whatever comes their way. However, as Christians we must carefully consider the options and opportunities that God sends our way every day. We must carefully consider each choice we make and saturate our lives with God’s Word so we can discern God’s way for our lives. God’s will and way for our lives is to make choices that honor Him. We can do this if our decisions express the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Prayer: Lord, may everything we do and everything we say demonstrate the fruit of Your Spirit living in us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.