Verse of the Day – Using the gifts you’ve already been given

2 Timothy 1:13-14

What you heard from me,

keep as the pattern of sound teaching,

with faith and love in Christ Jesus.

Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—

guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

Read at Bible Gateway

Read all of 2 Timothy 1

Timothy had been Paul’s young helper. But, now, he was about to go out on his own to be the leader of a church. Although his responsibilities were changing, Paul is telling him to continue patterning himself with the sound teaching, faith, and love in Christ Jesus. Timothy had all of the foundational teaching and the gifts he needed. He just needed to allow the Holy Spirit to guard him and guide him.

Verse of the Day – August 12 – We are God’s Handiwork

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

Handiwork? What does that mean?

To me, it means that God,

through Christ Jesus,

took special care, time, thought,

to create me.

To fashion me out of the most precious materials

To mold me into a unique shape

To make sure He put me in just the right environment

so that I would grow according to His plan.

He sat, pondering, to give me a special kind of

heart to be receptive to the needs of others

To give me His kind of love, agape, so that

I would have an empathetic touch

and voice to minister to those I meet.

To give me the perfect mate so that I would know

that His love for me would have arms

to hold me,

joy to share with me,

patience to lift me up when I am down,

Unconditional human, yet Godly, love

that would shelter me

through all the storms of life.

To give me a vision for souls

in their lost state

and love to give everyone I meet,

and to help

lead them to His light.

Yes, He thought of all I would need

to go through life here on earth

and He gave me all the tools

to handle the journey

Some didn’t look like they were meant

for me,

but as I am drawn to minister to others

each day,

I realize that being, in the world’s eyes,

flawed,

would be my greatest gift

from my Creator

so that I could feel what they feel,

hurt as they hurt,

walk where they walk,

and know that through my reaching

out,

I have allowed God to use my arms

to wrap

His arms around His children.

a semblance of how

He would wrap His arms around them

if He were here in the flesh.

I am humbled to be

His Handiwork.

~ Sharon Rule