Monday, November 21, 2016

November 21, 2016: Sharing Our Story

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2016 - Day 326  

Devotional Song:  … GO TO THIS LINK …  Please take the time to take in a YouTube video of images from Big Daddy Weave singing … My Story … poignantly singing of how we should use the words of our story to honor our relationship with Christ.


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Highlight Verse: Ephesians 4:29 [NKJV] …  
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 
… What we say and how we say it so often becomes the most visible witness of our Christianity. 
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Highlight Text: Ephesians 4:25-32 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK 
… God, thru Paul, exhorting Christians how we can go deeper by maintaining our relationship and fellowship with Christ by how we live.
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Reference Passage #1 … Proverbs 18:21 [NKJV] …  
21 Death and live are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat it’s fruit. 
… Our words so often become the most powerful force we have to influence others for Christ.

Reference Passage #2 … Ephesians 4:1-2 [NKJV] …  
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,    ... 
… As Christians we are to speak and live in a manner worthy of our calling as “Christians.”

My Journal for Today:  … Our Daily Bread author, Anne Cetas, relates as story of a young lady, Emily, who was touched by the words of a group of friends who were telling of their thanksgiving customs. The author wrote: Right away Emily felt uneasy with her attitude. You are part of that family. “What would you like to do differently to change the day?” … she asked herself. She decided she wanted to privately tell each person she was thankful to the Lord that they were her sister, niece, brother, or great-niece. When the day arrived, she expressed her thankfulness for them one by one, and they all felt loved. It wasn’t easy because it wasn’t normal conversation in her family, but she experienced joy as she shared her love for each of them. 

What we say to others, especially family or friends, ALWAYS has an impact on our relationship with them.  It’s OUR STORY; and it can even damage a relationship severely if our words don’t conform to what the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:29 accompanied by the way we live, especially as we reflect our relationship with Christ in what we say or do [see also Eph. 4:1-2].

Again, what we say, as Solomon wrote (in Prov. 18:21), has the power of life/death [see Photo above]. So, today, I’m convicted to use my words only, as Paul wrote in the highlight verse … to either edify others or to share God’s grace with them. Will you join me in that commitment?

As Big Daddy Weave sings in today’s song, let’s use our words to tell others the story of how grateful we are that Jesus loves others and He will change our lives for His glory.

My Prayer Today: Heavenly Father, … Lord, may all I think, say, and do reflect You to others. … Amen  

Blogger Note:  Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries.  If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.

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