Daily Truth

Today's time being reminded of our relationship with God is Hebrews 12:5-13
Father,
Thank You for making me Your child (5) and loving me enough to correct me (6). Help me understand Your discipline and endure it (7). Don't stop disciplining me until I am shaped in Your image (10). Teach me to submit to earthly authority, but even more to Your authority (9). Even though Your discipline may hurt, use it to produce in me holiness, peace, and righteousness (11). Heal me of my sinful inclinations (12-13).

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Daily Truth

Hi fellow-followers of Christ. Let Hebrews 12:1-4 re-direct your thinking today.
Lord,
Strip me of my own selfish ways so I can be free to run for You (1). Help me keep my eyes on Jesus, who gave me faith and will perfect my faith (2). Remind me today of the joy that follows obedience and the joy of sitting with You around Your throne so that I will be able to make it through the things that hurt (2). Don't let me get so tired that i give up running the race You put me in (3). Help me say no to being my own king and doing things my way even if it means I shed blood to serve You, my King (4).

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Daily Truth

Today, let your faith be challenged by Hebrews 11.
Lord,
Let my walk, my decisions, my priorities, and dreams be determined by what I believe about You (1-38). I believe: You made me (3), You expect me to give You my best (4,17), that You will reward me for seeking You (6), that You will save me from destruction (7), that I must obey You even when it does not make sense (8), that this world is not my home (13-16), that my actions will prove my faith (22), that it is better to suffer than enjoy sin (25,35-38), and that victory is in You (32-34). Help my unbelief.

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Daily Truth

Today, let Hebrews 10 change the way You live.
If I claim to follow Christ, I must live to do Your will just as Jesus did (7). Thank You for perfecting me forever (14) and never remembering my sin ever again (17). Draw my heart near to You (22). Don't let my hope waver (23). You are faithful (23). Help me help others love and live more like You (24). Don't let me be comfortable when I stay away from Your body (25). Don't let me treat Your sacrifice casually by trusting it to cover my sin but not trying to be holy (29). Help me fear You rightly (31). Teach me joy that keeps me from pulling away from You (33-39).

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Daily Truth

Today, be changed by Hebrews 9.
Lord,
Thank You that with Your blood, you bought me for eternity (12) and promised me an inheritance that is eternal (15). Thank You for taking the punishment for my sin (26). Help me serve You because I know You look at me with favor, not as a way to gain Your favor. Cause my life to be evidence that You are alive (14).

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Daily Truth

Today's thought-shaping text is Hebrews 7.
King of my peace and righteousness(7:1-3),
Thank You for being in such control over history that even a Canaanite king of Abraham's time was a picture of Christ (6:20), and the old testament priestly sacrifices pointed to the one, perfect sacrifice of Jesus. Don't let me be deceived into thinking that I am the one who blesses You. Anything good with which I bless You, I have received from You (7:7). Thank You For being the kind of priest I need: one who always lives to intercede for me with the Father, holy, innocent, undefiled, sinless, and right there in heaven with the Father, not needing to offer sacrifices for sin over and over since You offered the perfect sacrifice once, Yourself (25-27). I draw near to you today. You are an immeasurably better hope than hoping that sacrificed bulls might cover the guilt of my rebellion (18-19). Thank You for that sure hope.

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Daily Truth

Today's mind-changing reading is in Hebrews 6.
God,
Apart from You working in me, I can't mature spiritually (3), repent (4), or endure in producing good fruit (7). So don't let me be lazy or give up chasing after my hope of being with You in glory (11-12). Let this perseverance be a source of my assurance, along with the confidence that You won't go back on Your promise of salvation (12,17-18). This hope is a "sure and firm anchor of my soul"(19).

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Daily Truth

Today's life-altering text is in Hebrews 5.
Lord,
Remind me that I serve You for the benefit of others, not others for Your benefit (1). As a citizen in Your kingdom of priests, help me help others who just don't know you well and are walking away from You (2). Teach me obedience through what I suffer (8). Let me not be slow to understand Your truth (11). Help me give to each one I disciple the kind of food that they need to grow (12-14). Grow Your body up in maturity so we can distinguish good from evil (14).

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Daily Truth

Today's attitude-shifting reality is in Hebrews 4.
Giver of lasting rest,
Teach me what it looks like to fear You (1). Thank You that the Promised land in Israel was merely a foreshadow of the real and lasting rest that You have waiting for all believers (8-9). Show me what making "every effort to reach that rest" requires of me today (11). Let Your Word convict me now (12). I will have to answer to You for my lack of effort to think like You think (13). Yet You know my weaknesses and relate to my struggles (15). Help me today (16).

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Daily Truth

Today's life-altering truth is in Hebrews 3.
Living God (12),
Help me take time to "consider" Jesus' faithfulness and greatness (1-5). Thank You that I can know that I am Yours because of the "courageous and confident" hope that You have given me (6,14). Don't let me ignore Your voice, works, or ways today (7-10). Don't let me put off helping someone who is at risk of becoming resistant to Your will (13).

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Daily Truth

Today's life-changing truth is in Hebrews 2.
Lord, remind me always of Your truth so I won't drift away from You (1). Thank You that Jesus became human in every way to
cover my sin and help me when I suffer and am tested (17-18). Thank You for being in control of everything, even when I am blind to it (8). What I am not blind to is that Jesus came down and died for me (9) so I could be Your child (10-11). Don't let me forget it (1).

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Daily Truth

Today's passage is Hebrews 1.
God,
Thank You for Your angels who minister for my good (14), but thank You ever so much more for Jesus who took my punishment to make me pure (3), who gives me an inheritance of salvation (14), who shows me Your greatness and exact nature (2-3), who speaks to me (2), and who holds this crazy world together (3). Because Christ loves what is right (9), does not change (12), and His rule lasts forever (8), I gladly bow before Him today to be ruled by Him alone. Lord, help me bow.

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Daily Truth

Today's life-changing truth is Philemon (the whole letter),
Father,
If it is what You want, use my house to be a place where Your church will be matured (3). Make me effective at displaying Christ's greatness using every good thing You have put in me (6). Use me to look out for those to whom I am a spiritual parent (10, 18). Lead me to serve You by choice, not duty (14). Extend my ministry through the hands of those I disciple (12).

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Daily Truth

Today's life-changing truth is Titus 3.
Lord,
Prepare me for every good work (3:1). Don't let me talk badly about anyone (3:2). Thank You for saving me from being a slave to my pleasures and passions (3:3-5). Continue to teach me to be controlled by You alone. Help me focus on what really matters and not hurt the unity of Your body (3:8-10).

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Daily Truth

Today's life truth is in Paul's letter to Titus, ch. 2.
Lord, burn into my mind a picture of what You want me to become (2:2-3), realizing that my choices today impact what I will be like when older. Use me to teach someone younger what You want them to be (2:4-7). Help me live so that others will have nothing about which to accuse me (2:8). Make my life display the beauty of the gospel (2:10). Thank You for taking my sins away and make me eager to do Your works (2:14). Help my stubborn heart submit both to You and to those to whom You have given the heavy responsibility of leading (2:15), and help me discern biblically when the two lead in different directions.

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Daily Truth

Today's mind-transforming truth is from Titus 1.
Lord,
Cause today's truth to lead me to be like You (1:1). Give me a true child in the faith to raise to maturity (1:4). Teach me what to look for in my pastors (1:6-9). Help me identify sin for what it is and help me to rebuke it in humility (1:12-13). Make my works to be the evidence that I do know You (1:16).

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Daily Truth

Today's truth from the Word is in 2 Timothy 4:9-22.
Lord,
Don't let me be in love with the present world even if it means I am all by myself (4:10). Make me useful for ministry (4:11). Stand by me and strengthen me (4:17). I want all to hear about Your salvation (4:17). Reveal Your greatness always in me (4:18).

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Daily Truth

Today's life-shaping truth is in 2 Timothy 4:1-8.
My righteous Judge (4:8),
Help me speak Your message no matter how difficult (4:2). Help me patiently teach others to live in holiness (4:2). Let me not put up with unbiblical teaching ever (4:3-4). Cause me to fulfill the work You have for me to do (4:5). Help me know what is worth fighting for (4:7). Cause me to finish the race well (4:7). Thank You for the righteousness with which You will crown me (4:8). I can't wait for You to come (4:8).

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Daily Truth

Today's mind-transforming truth is 2 Timothy 3.
Lord,
Help me love You more than: myself, my money, my accomplishments, my wants, my bad habits, and my pleasures (3:1-4). Don't let me merely look religious without being powerfully change by You (3:5). Prepare me to face persecutions for living like Christ (3:12). Thank You for Your Word. Teach me, rebuke me, correct me, and train me by Your Word so I will be ready to do Your work (3:15-16).

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The Most Loving Things You Can Do for Your Teen - 1 John 5:1-5

Having just said that love for God and others is evidence of salvation,John takes a moment to develop further this picture of true love for God and His children.

John first reaffirms that loving God requires loving others. He appeals to the reality that to be unloving to a child is to be unloving to his parents. One cannot love the parents but then neglect those most cherished by them. Since those “born of God” are God’s children, we must be loving to them as an expression of love for their heavenly Father.

But how do we show love best to the Father’s children who happen to be our teens? John says that there are two most loving things that we can do for them: “love God and obey His commands” (v. 2). Many love lots of things, but not God. As a result, many are religious, but not powerfully transformed. The first way to love our believing teens best is to show them a love for God that changes us.

The second way we can best love God’s children who are also ours is to obey God’s
commands. More than a comfortable life, excellent education, or athletic opportunity, children of God need to see our obedience. Live-out the greatest commission toward your believing teen. By your example, teach them to “obey everything Christ has commanded.” These are the most loving two things you can do for them.

The cool thing is that following these commands is not a burden. It is freeing. Trusting that Jesus is the Messiah leads only to victory (v. 4-5). Have you loved your born-of-God teen like this today? Have they seen that you love God more than everything? Have they seen you obey God even when it is difficult. There is no better way to love them.

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