GOD’S ORIGINAL
God’s Design for Your Life
Prem Kumar Havaji
INDEX
PREFACE
1. You are Designed by God
2. Defining your D.E.S.I.G.N.
3. Growing up in God’s Design as a Child
4. God’s Design for Your Youthhood
5. Your Education and His Design
6. Your Profession and God’s Design
7. The Vitality of Marriage in God’s Design for you
8. God’s Design for Your Old Age
9. Growing in to God's Design for your Life
In closing…
Before you read this book…
Sometimes life seems to be meaningless due to the circumstances we go through. We tend to compare ourselves with others and feel that we are worthless because we are not like them. We have such feelings when we look at how talented, gifted and intelligent others are. They may be able to accomplish a lot in life whereas we could not achieve any of those things. But, God has a special plan and purpose for each one of our lives. God knows why He made you and what He wants to accomplish through you. It is our duty to intentionally seek and know what our Maker wants of us because, if we are willing, He will shape us into His Master Design.
Your own cluster of experiences and they are very precious. He can effectively use everything we go through, to mould us and make us effective. So, take time to go through the pages of this book carefully. Ask the Lord to reveal to you what His plan for your life is.
Allow the Holy Spirit to shape you into the person according to the IMAGE HE HAS FOR YOU ON HIS HEART.
Day #1
- YOU ARE DESIGNED BY GOD
Every single individual on the face of this earth is designed by God. No matter where in the world you were born, what your abilities are or how you look; the truth is, you are carefully made by an intelligent and loving God.
Psalm 139:13-17 says, “13You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous—and how well I know it. 15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. 16You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. 17 How precious are your thoughts about me, O God! They are innumerable!” (NLT)
God had prepared the preliminary sketch of your form and structure very artistically and skilfully even before you were born- intending for a definite purpose.
Every single part of your body is designed and created within God’s knowledge.
Genesis 2:7 says, “Then the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man's nostrils, and the man became a living person” (NLT). And Job 10: 8 says, “Your hands have made me and fashioned me, an intricate unity…” (NRSV).
The Bible testifies that God used His own Almighty hands to make you. All the delicate parts of your body are made by God. Every single one of them is made very carefully and beautifully. Therefore, God’s definition of beauty could be positively different from yours, and disliking yourself or others means disliking God’s marvellous workmanship.
God knows your mechanism very well, because He saw you being made.
Job 10:11-12 says, “11You clothed me with skin and flesh, and you knit my bones and sinews together. 12You gave me life and showed me your unfailing love. My life was preserved by your care.”
I once read that a human eye can see around 10 million colours and to compose a mechanical eye like the human eye, we need to use 250,000 television transmitters and 250,000 television receivers. It is incredible to see the perfection of the mechanism God had inter-woven within each part of our body. Each of them is so efficient that man’s inventions can never match up to them. God has planned your mechanism skilfully with a knitting together of body, spirit and mind. Do not be discouraged even if a part of your body does not work ‘normally’. He watched while you were being made. So, no doubt He knows every tiny cell of our body and He knows how it works. In fact, He knows us better than we know ourselves. Ask Him to show you how best you can glorify Him with what you are.
God can use your life’s experiences to make you a person that He wants you to be.
God has a special purpose for letting you go through what you are going through right now.
James 1:2 says, “Whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. 3 For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.
Your experiences are very precious. Don’t waste them away. When you go through tough times, you rather cry out to God in trust than in disbelief. You rather learn something out of such experiences than complain about them. Your experiences make you stronger and better. If you permit, they can draw you closer to God and to His purpose for your life.
Job was a man who suffered greatly. He explains how he made use of his experiences. Let’s see some of them…
- Job 4:8: “ My experience shows that those who plant trouble and cultivate evil will harvest the same.”
- Job 5:3: “ From my experience, I know that fools who turn from God may be successful for the moment, but then comes sudden disaster.”
- Job 15:17-21: 17 “If you will listen, I will answer you from my own experience… 20 Wicked people are in pain throughout their lives. 21 They are surrounded by terrors, and even on good days they fear the attack of the destroyer.””
Job learned from his painful experiences of the wicked. And to top it all, he suffered from ‘unbearable’ loss of family, wealth and health. Therefore, James testifies of him in James 5:11:
“We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. Job is an example of a man who endured patiently. From his experience we see how the Lord’s plan finally ended in good, for he is full of tenderness and mercy.”
Once, a man decided to leave everything and join a monastery. He was required to make an oath of silence. He was not allowed to peak anything other than just the two words every 5 years in order to brief up his experiences to the head monk. When he finished his first 5 years tenure, the monk asked him to describe his experiences within two words and the man said, "HARD BEDS." When he completed the next 5 years, the monk asked him again how it was and the man replied, "BAD FOOD." Very soon, 5 more years rolled by and he walked up to the monk and said, "I QUIT!" to which the head monk shot back, "Yes, this doesn't surprise me. You've been doing nothing but complaining for the past 15 years!"
Many of us only complain of hardships rather than making use of them to mould us to become better people. Although, going through hard times is not easy, remember, your experiences are your production wheel. You can either let them make you or break you. Their purpose is to bring you to the perfection of God’s design for your life.
God has a wonderful design for your life
God has an ‘exceptional and skilful’ design for your life. He has design for your birth, your childhood, your youthhood, your education, your adulthood, your relationship with Him, your emotions, your physical appearance, your career, your marriage, your children, your involvement in His kingdom business, your relationships, your words, your reactions/responses, your finances, your retirement, your ultimate image and finally, your eternity. His thoughts for your life are innumerable.
Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “8 ‘My thoughts are completely different from yours,’ says the Lord . ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’”
God has great plans for you beyond your present difficult experiences. In fact, there is much more than what you can see right now. God’s plans are higher than what you can imagine. He ‘is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within’ you (Eph 3:20). God, the Potter, is on the business of moulding your life into a magnificent master-piece according to the design He had made for your life.
Your Prayer
Thank you Lord, for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous—and how well I know it. Thank you for planning my life so well. Thank you for making me- me. Thank you for all my experiences. Teach me to discover your design for my life so that it would be made perfect in me. Amen.
Day#2
- DEFINING YOUR D.E.S.I.G.N
The most important thing prior to starting a construction work is to acquire a building plan from an expert civil engineer. Having the plan in hand does not fetch you much unless you follow it through and through. One has to carefully examine the plan and follow it in the course, in order to bring the construction in to the desired shape.
Similarly, God has a specific plan for your life, which you need to refer to so that you can lead your life accordingly. There are clear instructions given in His Word, the Maker’s Manual. Discover yourself in the light of His Word. You need to know who you are by a careful examination of your own composition so that you can turn what you have into what God wants you to be.
I would like to bring a simple acronym to help us understand the kind of person God has made us. Discover yourself, use your ‘special making’ and let God do His work in your life so that you can be formed in to His design for your life. Let us take for instance the life of Apostle Paul.
Galatians 1:13
I'm sure that you've heard the story of my earlier life when I lived in the Jewish way. In those days I went all out in persecuting God's church. I was systematically destroying it. I was so enthusiastic about the traditions of my ancestors that I advanced head and shoulders above my peers in my career. Even then God had designs on me. Why, when I was still in my mother's womb he chose and called me out of sheer generosity!
Data- Information you have acquired
‘Data’ is what you have learnt throughout your years of experience and the information you have gathered from both formal and informal teaching, which plays a very important role in your design. What you have learned constitutes to the kind of person you are.
One of the most decisive factors that made Paul the way he was his learning in the earlier part of his life.
Paul said- I am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, and I was brought up and educated here in Jerusalem under Gamaliel. At his feet I learned to follow our Jewish laws and customs very carefully. Acts 22:3.
Paul learned under an expert Jewish law teacher who was an influential person (Acts 5:34), which made him a great teacher of Christian principles and influenced lives all over the world. Paul had the working knowledge of the laws of his state therefore he could use his privileges to preach the Gospel. He had the biographical, political and economical knowledge of neighbouring cities, which he used for what God had called him to be.
There are numerous ways of learning. It is discovered that 1% of our learning comes through taste, 1.5% through touch, 3.5% through smell, 11% through hearing and 83% through sight. Sometimes we may learn some things by doing them. A Chinese proverb says, “Tell me; I'll forget. Show me; I may remember. But involve me and I'll understand.” Whichever way you may lean, what you have learned in your past constitutes to what you are and this can be used to become a person God wants you to be.
So, in order to know God’s design for your life you need to discover your ‘self’ by examining what information you have in your brain. Ask yourself, “How can I use this knowledge to become the person God wants me to be?”
Energy- Your physical strength to do something
God has designed you with a special physical strength. Unlike others, you are strong in many ways. They cannot do some of the things you are able to do the way you can. Apostle Paul traveled to many places, endured many difficulties, preached to many people and persuaded them to live in the newness of Christ. He was a man who could travel extensively and survive every situation that he came across.
He says, “In everything we do we try to show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. 5 We have been beaten, been put in jail, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food.” 2 Corinthians 6:4-5. And he further says, “We have faithfully preached the truth.” Corinthians 6:7.
Some of us can do long hours of walking. Some can run fast. Others can speak loud. Some of us are athletes. Some have such a great digestive system that they can digest almost anything. These are some areas in which one could be tough. In your own special way, you can go through real rough road in life. What are your special abilities?
Signature- Your uniqueness
Understand that you are not like anyone else on earth. No one on this planet is exactly the same as you are, even if you have a twin. Your individual collection of experiences makes you unique.
The Bible says, “As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow.” Ephesians 4:16.
No one does something just the way you do it. No one thinks about something just the way you think about it. You are special. Humphrey Osmond once said, "There is no one else who can ever fill your role in the same way, so it's a good idea to perform it as well as possible.”
Keep this book aside for a while and think about it. There is something very special about you. What is it? What are the unique traits God has kept in you? Think about how best you can use them in growing into God’s design for your life.
Interests- What you love to do
Everyone has something that they are interested in. They love, enjoy and desire to do it again and again. It could be an evil desire that comes from flesh or a right desire that comes from a pure heart. What you always do or love to do define what you are. It definitely has a great impression on your design. If your desire is in accordance with the Word of God, you can channelize that to confirm yourself into God’s design for your life. Know what you like the most.
Many are not worried about God’s design for their lives and they look out for self-centred interests. They are self-seeking, self-elevating and self-satisfying. Their interests are not after others’ good and certainly not according to what makes God happy.
“For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.” Phil 2: 21.
The Bible says, “Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Phil 2:4.
Sometimes, we are frustrated with our own lives because, our interests are not properly channelled. Take delight in the Lord , and he will give you your heart’s desires. Psalm 37:4. God doesn’t forbid us from having interests; rather he wants them to be right so He can give you what you desire when they constitute to His design for your life.
Ask yourself- “What are my interests?” “What is it that I love to do the most?” “Are my interests properly channelled?”
Gifts- Your ability to do something
The Bible says, “He (God) has given each one of us a special gift according to the generosity of Christ.” Ephesians 4:7.
Gifts can be divided into three kinds: 1. Your inborn abilities, 2. Skills you are trained in and 3. The abilities bestowed by the Holy Spirit. It is a special ability you possess to do something in a very special way. Others cannot do it the same way you do it.
For instance, you may have learned or inherently possessed the ability of drawing, eloquence, giving, sports, music, singing, writing articles or any of such kind. For the born-again, the list may go beyond it as they have received the gifts of the Holy Spirit such as: speaking in tongues, interpreting tongues, prophecy, healing, miracle working, serving, preaching, teaching, etc.
Talking about the natural skills, in order to know the areas in which you are gifted you need to find out the things you are able to do efficiently and get specific about them. You need to also carefully notice what kind of things you do get people to appreciate you. You may also know your gifts by assessing how competent you are in those areas.
What is it that you can do easier than others can?
Notions- your ideas and views
Your design consists of your ideas, your understanding, and your views about something. If there are hundred people in a room, each of them has their own way of thinking.
One day a rich man decided to show his son what a better life they were living. He took him to the country side and as they were approaching a village, the father stopped the car and asked his son to come out and see how miserable people are living in this place. The son looked around and saw a pond, some ducks swimming in the water, a small boy playing in the water, a small hut beside the pond and he also heard the singing of the birds on the trees around.
As they were leaving back to their city, on their way, father asked the son what he had learnt. And the son said, “Father, now I understand how much poverty we are living in. This boy in the village has a bigger pond than we have at home and more birds than we own and he has no boundaries to his property”. It was totally a different perspective from the father’s.
“Intelligent people are always open to new ideas. In fact, they look for them”. Proverbs 18:15. The way you think can be very different from the way others do. Apostle Paul said, “In spite of what I am, God has designs on me.” You may think different, and when you notice how different you think from others, it can help you discover your design.
God had designed you even before you were conceived. But, for that design to be completely developed in you, your D.E.S.I.G.N. has to be moulded according to God’s Word and His will. It is very essential to direct the above in the right way in order to develop God’s design in us. Look at your design in the light of God’s Word and let it shape you.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, I thank you for making me so unique. Thank you for designing my image so carefully and the way I am. Help me to positively use everything that I am to let your Spirit to make me the person you want me to be. Give the wisdom to discover myself. Amen.
Day#3
3. GROWING UP IN GOD’S DESIGN AS A CHILD
I once heard a story about a four-year-old child. The father and his son were cleaning their backyard one afternoon. As the little boy was helping his dad, he looked up into the sky and found a flock of geese flying. As they flew, the boy noticed that they were making a beautiful formation that looked like letter ‘V’. Then the boy looked at his dad and asked, “Dad, do they know any other letters?”
It is quite interesting to know how inquisitive we were to discover new things as we grew up. Childhood is a very crucial part of one’s life as the development of one’s design begins to become evident at this stage. Someone said, “The heart of a child is like a wall that is freshly plastered. Whatever falls on it makes a lasting impression.” This was the foundation phase of our lives.
So Jesus grew both in height and in wisdom, and he was loved by God and by all who knew him. Luke 2:52.
You may have crossed your childhood long ago. Just remember the things you have learned in the process of growing up. Everyone may not have the same experiences as you do. Some of your experiences may be similar to others and others may be unique to you. But, God gave us all a childhood from which we can draw out great wisdom.
Let us first see God’s original design the one’s childhood.
Children are designed fit for god’s kingdom
In Matthew 18:3 Jesus said, “I assure you, unless you turn from your sins and become as little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.”
Jesus placed a great value on children. In this passage Jesus could be praising the children for their spirit of repentance, humility, innocence and faith. The faith of children surpasses their reasoning. Before we learned the vain wisdom of this world, we all had those qualities mentioned above.
Look at the innocent faith of this boy? As children, that’s the kind of faith we had. We may not have understood how it would happen, yet we just believed. Even when we are grown to be adults, God wants us to keep those qualities in us.
Our childhood reminds us of so many experiences. So, what do we do with those experiences today? To be the kind of people that God wants us to be, we ought to be child-like in our faith in God because, children are made fit for God’s Kingdom.
Growing into the right shape
As we grew up to be teenagers and adults, we were supposed to grow into the shape God had designed for us- Physically, spiritually and mentally. In Proverbs 24:13-14 we read wonderful physical and spiritual health tips -
13 My child, eat honey, for it is good, and the honeycomb is sweet to the taste. 14 In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hopes will not be cut short.
Children need a comprehensive growth that is, physical, spiritual and intellectual. If you never had this, it is never too late. You can get back on track right now. Get back to what you were and begin to allow God to gradually confirm you into His design for your life. In addition, you may also make sure your children and the children of the coming generations receive what they need to receive. No matter what kind of experiences you may have had. a you use your failures to build your children, you are on your way to be confirmed into God's design for your life.
- Teach your children to bring joy to their parents:
- A wise child brings joy to a father; a foolish child brings grief to a mother. Proverbs 10:1
- Discipline them only in love:
- 4 And now a word to you fathers. Don’t make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord. Ephesians 6:4.
- Be a god-like parent:
Knowing that God has a special plan for your child, it is very important for you to plan to give your child a meaningful childhood. God’s design for you is to care for your children and grow them in His care and guidance. As the Heavenly Father, He modelled what a father should be. Carefully read the following verses.
- And you saw how the Lord your God cared for you again and again here in the wilderness, just as a father cares for his child. Deuteronomy 1:31.
- But I have stilled and quieted myself, just as a small child is quiet with its mother. Yes, like a small child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2.
God is shown in the Bible as both a father and a mother. Be a god-like father/mother. Love your children despite your unfavourable experiences as a child. Reverse it for them. That is how you can use your experiences to become the person that God wants you to be.
Walt Larimore in his book, “God’s Design for the Highly Healthy Child” shows us practically the areas in which we need to take care of our children. He says that we need to be proactive in preventing physical disease, ensure proper nutrition, provide adequate protection, nurture family relationships, establish spiritual foundation, connect with the larger community, instil a balanced self-concept, engage in healthy activities and cultivate growth and maturity.
- Invest your time:
Spend quality time with your kids as you grow them up. After all, it is not just about making sure you have some food on the table. ‘Charles Francis Adams, a 19th century political figure and diplomat, kept a diary. One day he entered: "Went fishing with my son today--a day wasted." His son, Brook Adams, also kept a diary, which is still in existence. On that same day, Brook Adams made this entry: "Went fishing with my father--the most wonderful day of my life!" The father thought he was wasting his time while fishing with his son, but his son saw it as an investment of time.’1
Invest your time into your child’s life. Use your childhood experiences to build him/her. If you have experienced rejection when you were a child, give it into the Lord’s hand. Let Him bring good out of it. Let Him fill you with great love so you can pass on acceptance into your child’s life. Look at the way God cares for you in the process of making you the person He wants you to be. He is not willing to give up. In this way, even if you did not have the kind of growing up you were to have, you can still use your past to mould you into what God wants you to become.
Impact your child through your life
I once read about a prominent lawyer's son who dreamed of following in his father's footsteps. After graduating from college and law school with honours, he returned home to join his father's firm, intent on proving himself to be a skilled and worthy attorney. At the end of his first day at work he rushed into his father's office, and said, "Father, father! The Smith case, that you always said would go on forever -- the one you have been toiling on for ten years -- in one single day, I settled that case and saved the client a fortune!" His father frowned, and scolded his son, "I did not say that it would go on forever, son. I said that it could go on forever. When you saw me toiling on that case for days and weeks at a time, didn't it ever occur to you that I was billing by the hour?"2
You see, this is what the some parents teach their children. We need to teach what is right. Teach your children to choose the right path, and when they are older, they will remain upon it. Proverbs 22:6. Yes, you have great impact on your children’s lives.
As you teach your children, you have to do it in two ways : Verbal and Non-verbal. Someone said, “Your talk talks, your walk talks, but your walk talks louder than your talk talks.” Teach from the Word, your experiences and your exemplary life. God can use your experiences as a child to mould your child to become a person in God’s design. Your child needs to know what the Word of God in Proverbs 1:8,9 says: Listen, my child, to what your father teaches you. Don’t neglect your mother’s teaching. 9 What you learn from them will crown you with grace and clothe you with honour. Once again, experiences are valuable, don’t waste them away!
At the same time, you should realize that just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your God disciplines you to help you. Deuteronomy 8:5.
What if you haven’t had the opportunity of learning from your parents? It’s never too late. You can now begin the process of discovering God’s design for your life by using your experiences as a child and know that you have a great role to play in your child’s life.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, thank you for my childhood, no matter how it was. Thank you for giving me those experiences so that I can use them to mould myself into a person you have designed me to be. Help me help the younger ones as they grow, using my experiences, to confirm into your design for their lives. Amen.
4. GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR YOUTHHOOD
May our sons flourish in their youth like well-nurtured plants. May our daughters be like graceful pillars, carved to beautify a palace. Psalm 144:12.
While adults can use their experiences to fix what is ahead, young people have the opportunity to grow into God’s image for their lives, now. Youthhood is a precious phase of life where you make certain major decisions of your life. Before your do anything, always keep in mind that God has a plan and design for your life.
God has design for your personal life
a. Enjoy your youth, live wisely and stay pure:
Godly life is not a boring life. You can have fun and be joyful. The real joy comes from a life that is lived in wisdom and the decisions you have made with God's guidance. Do not give into sin in the name of happiness. Live according to God's precepts. Have fun, but stay pure.
9 Young people, enjoy your youth. Be happy while you are still young. Do what you want to do, and follow your heart’s desire. But remember that God is going to judge you for whatever you do. 10 Don’t let anything worry you or cause you pain. You aren’t going to be young very long. Ecclesiastes 11:9, 10.
In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely in all they do. Titus 2:6.
How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word and following its rules. Psalm 119:9.
b. Be energetic and hard-working:
The glory of the young is their strength; the grey hair of experience is the splendour of the old. Proverbs 20:29.
A wise youth works hard all summer; a youth who sleeps away the hour of opportunity brings shame. Proverbs 10:5
A young man entered business, failed, and spent seventeen years of his life paying the bad debts of a worthless partner. He was in love with a beautiful young woman to whom he became engaged, then she died. He ran for the legislature of his state and was badly defeated. He ran for Congress and again was badly defeated. He then sought an appointment to a government office and was refused. He ran for the United States Senate and was badly defeated. Then he ran for vice-president of the United States, with the same result. One failure after another was the story of his life, but he kept on trying. Then the tide began to turn and he became one of the greatest men of the United States.3 He is none other than Abraham Lincoln.
You may have lost a lot in your past. May be you didn't have godly parents or you may have had a horrible childhood filled with verbal and physical abuse, lack and rejection. Do not cry over your past. Look at how you can change what your past could to do to your future. Be strong and work hard. Trust in God and do not give up. God appreciates the diligent. He will honour you double for your trouble. Wait patiently and do not be hasty as you work hard.
c. When you are ready for marriage, make a careful choice:
There is this basic rule for the followers of Jesus when it comes to choosing your life partner.
Do not intermarry with them, and don’t let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters. 4 They will lead your young people away from me to worship other gods. Then the anger of the Lord will burn against you. Deuteronomy 7:3,4.
There is a big danger in marrying an ungodly person. Don't say that you are trying to lead the person to Christ. Once, a pastor had to counsel a young boy who wanted to marry a non-Christian girl. Whatever the pastor said, the boy was not convinced that he should not marry her. The boy spoke like a passionate soul-winner and said, "But, pastor, I am only trying to save her soul." The pastor thought for a while and asked the boy to stand on his office table. Then he told the boy to try to pull him up on to the table. The young man tried a lot to no avail. Finally, the pastor gave him one pull and before he knew, the boy was flat on the floor. Then the pastor told the boy, "This is what can happen to you if you go ahead with your decision."
The wisest king ever lived on the earth, King Solomon, could not stand the evil effect of marrying ungodly women. Please, my young friend, do not be too confident about yourself. Moreover, marriage is not a method of evangelism.
God’s design For Your relationships
a. Honour your parents and accept discipline:
Honour thy father and mother. Exodus 20:12.
One of my teachers asked us a question in our senior high class. "At what age do you become wise?" Being young, we thought we were already wise enough. Then he said "When you get 18, you think your parents know nothing and you are wiser than they are." How true! My young friend, do not make the mistake of believing that you know everything under the sky. Never dishonour your parents with words such as, “Mom, you know nothing about it.” Their ideas may sound outdated, but know that they are profound, especially when they are godly. Honour your parents and accept when they discipline you.
A wise child accepts a parent’s discipline; a young mocker refuses to listen. Proverbs 13:1.
“A mother had carefully saved money and educated her son. She sat in her son’s graduation while he walked across the platform and received his degree with honours. As he walked down the isle, instead of turning into the designated row, he kept walking; down to where his mother sat. The young man threw his arms around her neck, kissed her on the cheek, and as he placed his diploma in her hands, he said, "Here, Mother, you earned it!" The fifth commandment addresses that which many parents have earned.”4 Honour your parents and this is God’s will for your life.
b. Watch out with whom you are hanging around:
Young people who obey the law are wise; those who seek out worthless companions bring shame to their parents. Proverbs 28:7.
You might have heard this saying, "Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are." God clearly commands us not to seek out for worthless companions. They can lead you away from God. You may love them, but watch out that you don not ‘sit in the seat of mockers’ (Psalm 1:1).
c. Be an example:
There are 5 areas in which you can impact people. Not just your own age-group but also people older to you.
Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you teach, in the way you live, in your love, your faith , and your purity.1 Timothy 4:12 .
God's plan for you is to be a person who can make a great impact in people's lives.
God’s plan for your relationship with Him
a. Remember your Creator and be a worshipper:
Many young people think that religion is for the old people. They say, "Let me first enjoy my life." But, the Bible commands us to remember God when we are still young. God wants to use you for His glory while you are still young. When you hear about a sale in a shopping mall, you want to rush to the place and buy the best before others have picked them. You don't want left overs. Remember that God wants the best of your life. Give the best of your years instead of left overs because, this is God's design for your life.
So remember your Creator while you are still young, before those dismal days and years come when you will say, “I don’t enjoy life.” Ecclesiastes 12:1.
b. Be accountable in all you do
9 Young people, enjoy your youth. Be happy while you are still young. Do what you want to do, and follow your heart’s desire. But remember that God is going to judge you for whatever you do. 10 Don’t let anything worry you or cause you pain. You aren’t going to be young very long. Ecclesiastes 11:9, 10.
Always remember that God is watching you. He is going to ask you what you have done with the life that is given to you. You are accountable to God. This knowledge will keep you from walking in the evil ways.
c. Do not love the world, but win your battles:
I have written to you who are young because you are strong with God’s word living in your hearts, and you have won your battle with Satan. 15 Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love of the Father in you. 1 John 2:14-15.
When you say you are a Christian, you are saying you love God. When you say you love God, you need to show it by denouncing sin and all kinds of worldly ways.
This may look like a long list of do’s and don’ts. But these are areas in which God wants to mould you to fit into His perfect design for your life. You have lot of potential. Those who use their wisdom, energy and resources in the right way can develop God’s design in their lives. Therefore, make the best out of this crucial phase of your life.
Again, those of us that have crossed this phase, have seen it, experienced it and are moulded by it, as I have mentioned earlier, if you did not have the opportunity to walk with Lord, you can still use your experiences to help others and start walking towards growing into His design, today!
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, help me use all my youthful energy to glorify your name. Help me be the person you want me to be. Help me not to love the world but love you more than anything of it. Amen.
Day#5
5. GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR EDUCATION
"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind." James 1:5, 6.
Like any area of your life, God is interested in your education. He wants you to study well and attain knowledge in order to manage the world well and make it a better place to live.
God is Interested in Your Education
Your education is not a matter outside His concern; rather He is very much interested in how you study and what you study.
A young boy once approached his father to ask, "Dad, why does the wind blow?”, to which the father responded, "I don't know, son." "Dad, where do the clouds come from?" "I'm not sure, son." "Dad, what makes a rainbow?" "No idea, son." "Dad, do you mind me asking you all these questions?" "Not at all, son. How else are you going to learn?"
That is how some parents and teachers are in today's world. They don't mind what children are learning or whether they are learning anything. But, God wants to be with you and make you wise.
The Bible says, "As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him, and everything Samuel said was wise and helpful." 1 Samuel 3:19.
"God is all-powerful. Who is a teacher like him? No one can tell him what to do. No one can say to him, ‘You have done wrong.’" Job 36:22-23.
You need to ask God for wisdom. He told King Solomon, "I will give you a wise and understanding mind." 1 Kings 3:12.
God’s Heart for Your Education
God wants you to desire for wisdom. Read the following verses carefully.
It is senseless to pay tuition to educate a fool who has no heart for wisdom. Proverbs 17:16
My words are plain to anyone with understanding, clear to those who want to learn. Proverbs 8:9.
Teach the righteous, and they will learn more. Proverbs 9:9
Choose the right path for knowledge and wisdom. There are no shortcuts for wisdom. You need to diligently seek and learn. See the danger our first parents fell into when they took a shortcut to wisdom. "The woman was convinced. The fruit looked so fresh and delicious, and it would make her so wise! So she ate some of the fruit." Genesis 3:6. Eve began her search for wisdom on the wrong end.
God wants you to study with vision. Our world today needs intellectuals and visionaries to lead, administer, invent, teach, heal and strengthen the nation in the power and wisdom of God. He wants you to know the purpose of every step you take regarding your education. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. 1 Corinthians 9:26.
Methods God Had Designed for Your Learning
- Careful listening:
Listening carefully is different from just listening. You may just listen to anything but if you do not pay attention to what you are listening and act up on it, it is as good as not listening at all. Listen carefully and intentionally.
My son, pay attention to my wisdom; listen carefully to my wise counsel. 2 Then you will learn to be discreet and will store up knowledge. Proverbs 5:1,2.
A simpleton can learn only by seeing mockers punished; a wise person learns from instruction. Proverbs 21:11
- Careful observation:
There is a story about how a teacher taught his students about the importance of observation in learning. From the day they entered the ninth-grade health class, one blackboard was covered with the names and locations of the major bones and muscles of the human body. The diagram stayed on the board throughout the term, although the teacher never referred to it. The day of the final exam, they came to class to find the board wiped clean. The sole test question was: "Name and locate every major bone and muscle in the human body." The class protested in unison: "We never studied that!" "That's no excuse," said the teacher. "The information was there for months." After they struggled with the test for a while, he collected the papers and tore them up. "Always remember," he told the class, "that education is more than just learning what you are told."
Sir Isaac Newton learned a lesson from an apple tree, through observation. If you have the desire to learn, there is end number of things around you to watch and learn. Observe the important things around you and learn from them. One of the most important ways of learning that God has designed for us is observation. Improve your observation skills, learn more and become wise. The Bible instructs us to use this tool:
Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and be wise! Proverbs 6:6
Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its buds become tender and its leaves begin to sprout, you know without being told that summer is near. Matthew 24:32.
A great man by name Kenneth A. Kuhn said, “Education is something that you can earn, not receive it.” That means, you don’t just get educated by a tutor, but you have to work hard yourself to learn.
- Loving discipline:
All of us love to learn. But only few love disciple. You may need someone to discipline especially when you are not able to discipline yourself. Discipline is critically important both in training and correction.
To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction. Proverbs 12:1.
Develop self-control not to have too many side interests: Do not spend too much time on side interests such as entertainment/sports, etc. rather than what should be the main interest - learning. While sports and entertainment are important, let them not steal the entire time you have. Some of us are out of balance when it comes to such kind of activities.
You also must run in such a way that you will win. 25 All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26 So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. 27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
The Isthmian Games were second only in ancient Greece to the Olympics – and held on a site on about a dozen miles from Corinth. Once every two years a great city of tents would be set up by those visiting and competing in the games. The winner of a race received a wreath of wilted celery. Paul says to the Corinthian Christians – You’ve seen the effort, the training, the discipline, these guys put into running for a wreath of wilted celery. While you have to discipline yourself for the spiritual, you also need discipline in other areas of your life such as education. Discipline helps your success in area race.
One of the Olympics’ winners said, “This medal was worth all the hours and hours of training and practice and dedication….” Much practice required great discipline and your discipline will be paid off well.
It is worth studying hard to become wise. We need to give God His place so that He can help us fulfil His commission for our lives by as we are educated according to His design. Christian spirituality plays a very significant role in your education. If you are educated in the right way, chances are, you are going to fulfil God’s purpose for your life at your workplace.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, give me the grace to learn with diligence and vision, taking every step carefully so that I may influence the world for your Kingdom through my work. Thank you for your design and plan for my education. Help me fulfil your purpose for my life by becoming what you want me to be. Amen.
Day#6
6. GOD'S DESIGN FOR MEN AND WOMEN
Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have strong faith and be filled with love and patience. Titus 2:2.
3 Similarly, teach the older women to live in a way that is appropriate for someone serving the Lord. They must not go around speaking evil of others and must not be heavy drinkers. Instead, they should teach others what is good. 4 These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children, 5 to live wisely and be pure, to take care of their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God. Titus 2:3-5.
As we grow up into adulthood, there are few things God wants us to keep in mind. Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child does. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.” We need to put away childish ways and be mature in our conduct.
1. Be free from anger and controversy
One of the most common problems of men and women is anger. We behave and speak very irresponsible due to anger. 90% of the friction of daily life is caused by the wrong tone of voice5 caused by uncontrolled anger. B. Franklin once said, “Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.” How true!
There is a Chinese proverb that says, “The fastest horse cannot catch a word spoken in anger.6” A lady once came to Billy Sunday and tried to rationalize her angry outbursts. "There's nothing wrong with losing my temper," she said. "I blow up, and then it's all over." "So does a shotgun," Sunday replied, "and look at the damage it leaves behind!" What we do or say in anger can break a heart, damage self-esteem or break a relationship. So the Word of God says,
19 My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. 20 Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight. James 1:19-20.
But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behaviour, slander, and dirty language. Colossians 3:8.
2. Exercise self-control
- Lack of self-control brings death:
21 For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes. 22 An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him. 23 He will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his incredible folly. Proverbs 5:21-23.
- A Christian should bear the fruit of the spirit- self-control:
But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Galatians 5:22.
- Remember the judgment and the reward:
- We should live in this evil world with self-control, right conduct, and devotion to God, 13 while we look forward to that wonderful event when the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. Titus 2:12.
- So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the special blessings that will come to you at the return of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:13.
- Self-control leads us to godliness:
- Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness. 2 Peter 1:6.
Test your self-control by doing the following. While sitting at your desk make clockwise circles with your right foot. While doing this, draw the number "6" in the air with your right hand.
I was just kidding. But, probably you will be able to succeed in this by some practice. That’s how self-control can help you even in your spiritual life.
3. Be worthy of respect
Some of us complain of their spouses not respecting them. But the Bible teaches us to live a life worthy of respect.
One day, a superior officer was complaining in a staff meeting that he wasn't getting any respect. Later that morning he went out and got a small sign that read, "I'm the Boss". He then taped it to his office door. Later that day when he returned from lunch, he found that someone had taped a note to the sign that said. "Your wife called, she wants her sign back!" You don’t win respect in a fight. You win it by being respectful. Here are few verses that can help us be respectful.
- Don’t lose sight of good planning and insight. Hang on to them, 22 for they fill you with life and bring you honour and respect. Proverbs 3:21, 22.
- Fear of the Lord teaches a person to be wise; humility precedes honour. Proverbs 15:33.
- Avoiding a fight is a mark of honour; only fools insist on quarrelling. Proverbs 20:3
4. Live wisely
- God’s plan for your life is that you live your life wisely. Let people see how you are living your life and know the secret of your wise living. Live wisely among those who are not Christians, and make the most of every opportunity. Colossians 4:5.
- The wisest way of living it is the way God wants you to live. . Human plans, no matter how wise or well advised, cannot stand against the Lord. Proverbs 21:30.
- If you don’t know how to do it, ask. Ask God’s Word, ask the experienced people. Ask Get all the advice and instruction you can, and be wise the rest of your life. Proverbs 19:20.
- Know how to bring out the wise advice of the people that have gone ahead of you. Though good advice lies deep within a person’s heart, the wise will draw it out. Proverbs 20:5. Somehow, live a wise life. God does not want us to live foolish lives and get into trouble. He has no plans to waste our life.
5. Have strong faith
- Be a man of strong faith. Don’t live by sight. Live by faith. But you, dear friends, must continue to build your lives on the foundation of your holy faith. Jude 20.
- After all, God is looking for people of faith so that He can do something in and through their lives. It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. Hebrews 11:6.
- And, let your faith be visible. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless. James 2:17
6. Be filled with love and patience
- Everyone cannot please you, neither can you please everyone around you. You didn’t like someone? Love him/her. “You have heard that the law of Moses says, ‘Love your neighbour’ and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! Matthew 5:43, 44.
- Patience! For any production, there is a pre-production phase. There is a time of preparation and there is a time of final outcome. Even God is patient with you as He is in the business of making you according to His plan and design. So be patient with people and yourself. Patience can persuade a prince, and soft speech can crush strong opposition. Proverbs 25:15.
According to a traditional Hebrew story, Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted him, and then invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man’s feet and gave him food and drink. The old man immediately began eating without saying any prayer or blessing. So Abraham asked him, “Don’t you worship God?” The old traveller replied, “I worship fire only and reverence no other god.” When he heard this, Abraham became incensed, grabbed the old man by the shoulders, and threw him out his tent into the cold night air. When the old man had departed, God called to his friend Abraham and asked where the stranger was. Abraham replied, “I forced him out because he did not worship you.” God answered, “I have suffered him these eighty years although he dishonours me. Could you not endure him one night?”
May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other—each with the attitude of Christ Jesus toward the other. Romans 15:5.
But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Here there is no conflict with the law. Galatians 5:22, 23.
God’s standard for you to ‘be a man’ is to show it by doing the above. When someone tells you to be a man by doing what the world tells you, remember, truly being a man is being like Christ. Ask God to help you to be free from anger and controversies, exercise self-control, be worthy of respect, live wisely, have strong faith and be filled with love and patience.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear God, help me behave like a grown up person. Help me not to be childish in my actions but be mature in faith and my relationship with you and others. Help me love everyone because you have loved me. Amen.
Day #7
7. GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR PROFESSION
Ps 104:23-24: Then people go off to their work; they labour until the evening shadows fall again. O Lord, what a variety of things you have made! In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your creatures.
The sight of people labouring in their respective fields is part of God’s magnificent creation. It is very interesting to watch how people hurry in the morning and do to their offices/workplaces to labour and earn their bread. Adam was not just eating around the garden the whole day. Or he would have suffered from indigestion. The word of God says that God made a garden in the east and placed Adam there in order to take care of it (Gen 2:15).
When God gives us work, what standards do you think He has placed for us? How do you think it will help us grow into His image? Let us learn the biblical principles of work today.
1. WORK WITH INTEGRITY
Some people don’t like moving their finger, but they want everything served on their table. Such people look for short-cuts and not the right path. But, the Bible says, “People with integrity have firm footing, but those who follow crooked paths will slip and fall.” Pro 10:9.
We need to be industrious and honest and we will find what we desire for (Pro 10:3-4). God hates cheating but He delights in honesty (Pro 11:1). If you are lazy to work, think twice before you eat. Ask yourself- “What have I done to eat what is served on my plate?” (2 Thess 3:10). God’s plan for our lives is to work with integrity and contribute to His world.
2. MAINTAIN INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
Work is not just money making, but it is your service to people with people. You are working for people and you working with people. Through work you are contributing towards society-building.
While money could be a reason for you to work, it is more important for us to be people-oriented. We are building people and making their live better. Keeping this in mind, as we work, helps us to relate well with our customers and our employers/employees.
Let me paraphrase Ephesians 6:5-9 for you :
Employees, obey your earthly employers with respect and fear , and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favour when their eye is on you, but like employees of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is employee or employer.
And employers treat your employees in the same way . Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Employer and yours is in heaven, and there is no favouritism with Him.
3. ACCOPLISHING GIVEN TASKS
We need to finish what has been assigned to us IN TIME with expected quality. If the ants do not gather while it is summer, when the season is over, they would have nothing to eat. Pro 6:6-11 talks about how a lazy person should look at the ants and learn how hard and disciplined they work and complete it in time.
The Bible also commends Moses in Ex 40:33, “So Moses finished the work.” I heard this saying- “Under-promise and over-perform.” I would say at least do not under-perform.
In order to complete the given task, we should be able to work as team. Everyone of us on the team need to have the heart to work. In Nehemiah 4:6 we see the story of how Nehemiah and his team completed the work of building the wall around Jerusalem. He says, “…for the people had a mind to work.”
We need to be also continuously learning. Never stop learning in order to be able to meet the ever-changing needs of your clients. Pro 9:9: “Teach the righteous, and they will learn more.”
4. OBEY THE PRINCIPLE OF SABBATH
Today people are not worried how long they would live, but they are worried as to how well they can live. The irony of life is that people work more so they can live in a better place, wear better clothes, drive a better car, eat better quality food, store up all they can and feel good about how much they have preserved for future. But, they seldom realize they are squeezing, crushing, burning and abusing their bodies to the extent they can’t enjoy anything too long from what they have gathered for themselves.
Therefore, ‘work hard’ does not mean ‘be a workaholic’. Work, when it time to work and rest when it is time to rest. We are burning out of our work pressure and lack of recreation, rest, relationships and rest of the soul. Recreation is important for you mind to ease, rest for your body to recharge, relationships for the strengthening of your emotions and rest of the soul in the Presence of God so that you can be spiritually fulfilled and ethically strong; moreover, you need God because you are made for Him.
Gen 2:2 talks about resting one day a week. Don’t forget to keep it holy. Remember the benefits of the law of Sabbatical Year ever for the land.
Remember, according to 1 Cor 3:9, the primary and the ultimate purpose of your life is to be God’s fellow-worker. You may be working with your boss, but you are working for Jesus.
And. God has blessed each of us with unique set of skills (Ex 31:1-11). Take time to discover them before you choose your work-place. "Do all in the name of the Lord Jesus" (Col. 3:17).
Once, a young employee asked his employer in a cobbler shop, “Sir, why do you take so much care while you make the shoes while the shop opposite to ours just finish the job in an easier way?” “Harry”, answered the employer, "I do not cobble shoes just for the four bits and six bits (50c or 75c) that I get from my customers. I am doing this for the glory of God. I expect to see every shoe I have ever repaired in a big pile at the judgment seat of Christ, and I do not want the Lord to say to me in that day, 'Dan, this was a poor job. You did not do your best here.' I want Him to be able to say, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.'" Then he went on to explain that just as some men are called to preach, so he was called to fix shoes, and that only as he did this well would his testimony count for God.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, please help me to remember every single day that it is given for me so that I can contribute to your world to make it a better place to live. Help me to know that I am not just working for my boss, but for you. Help me be faithful in everything I do. Amen.
Day # 8
8. GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR MARRIAGE
“The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” Genesis 2:18-25.
An old couple was resting on a couch at home, the husband resting next to his wife on with his head in her lap. She carefully removed his glasses. "You know, honey," she said sweetly, "without your glasses you look like the same handsome young man I married." "Honey," he replied with a grin, "without my glasses, you still look pretty good too!"7 Good humour. Yet, I believe they grew in love even as they grew together older.
Today, many marriages are breaking because they are not able to understand the purpose of marriage and they are not able to value this Holy Institution as much as they should. At workplace, I have even heard someone say, “Office is your first home.” What a disaster in the thinking of man! Where is the world going? People are striving to build empires of great wealth and fame at the cost of their marriages.
Where is your marriage standing? You may be a pastor, youth worker, business person or a professional. Place your marriage first in your priority. Ask God to help you with your pursuit to save your marriage if it is on the verge of breaking and divorce. Learn what the Lord has planned for your marriage and how it helps you to become the person He wants you to be.
1. The Help Meet
God said, “It is not good for man to be alone.” Apostle Paul mentions that it is good for the unmarried to stay unmarried for the purpose of completely dedicating themselves for the Lord. But he also mentions that it needs special grace of God. But, the primary plan for God for an individual is to marry. A man should have one wife and a woman to have one husband.
The man takes up the leadership of the family and the wife to be the suitable helper/help meet/helper matching: Genesis 2:18. “Helper/help” usually refers to divine assistance, but it is used in three prophetic passages of military aid (Isa 30:5; Ezek 12:14; Hos 13:9). Therefore, to help someone does not imply that the helper is stronger than the helped; simply that the latter’s strength is inadequate by itself (e.g. Josh 1:14; 10:4, 6; 1 Chron 12:17, 19, 21, 22). At the same time, it does not mean that ‘the helped’ is greater than ‘the helper’. And a ‘rib’ represents support.
It is simply that “Two are better than one … for if they fall one will lift up his fellow” (Eccl 4:9–10; cf. Prov 31:10–31).
2. The Right Match
Did you notice that even though the background, tastes, habits, etc. are different from each other, a wife and her husband can have a great marriage? Never complain, “We are different and that’s why we have problems.” You were meant to be different. The original Hebrew word for “suitable helper” can be otherwise translated as “matching him,” literally, “like opposite him”. Hence, even if you are not identical, you are complementary.
The help looked for is not just assistance in his daily work or in the procreation of children, though these aspects may be included, but the mutual support companionship provides. Even if you are different from each other, remember, God has put you together because, you need this person for you to become what God wants you to become. He/she is the right match for you.
3. The Equal Match
Many problems arise in marriage due to the question, ‘who is great?’ Men fight for their upper hand while women, especially in today’s world, fight for their freedom from the oppressive hand of their husbands. Who is greater?
Matthew Henry comments on this- “Not made out of his head to top him, not out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved.”
“Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.” 1 Pet 3:7.
4. One Flesh
Marriage is the most intimate relationship of all. This resembles the relationship of Christ with His church. He is the head and the church is His body.
The phrase ‘they become one flesh’ does not denote merely to the sexual union that follows marriage, or the children conceived in marriage, or even the spiritual and emotional relationship that it involves, though all are involved in becoming one flesh. This also affirms that just as blood relations are one’s flesh and bone so marriage creates a similar kinship relation between man and wife. They become related to each other as brother and sister are.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, help me to remember that you have planned my marriage in a special way. Help me be thankful for my wife/husband. Let me honour this marriage and stay faithful to my spouse. Mould me to become a person who can contribute to the “perfect bride, the church” when Christ returns. Amen.
Day #9
9. GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR OLD AGE
“The distinguished behaviourist B.F. Skinner was addressing the Nova University 1978 Conference on Aging. He was explaining how, at age 74, he made allowances for his impaired vision and hearing.
Skinner recalled a time when he was having a Chinese meal in a busy senior-centre living room, and someone sitting near him pointed out the food in the middle of the table. Skinner decided he was expected to eat some. As he took a piece, he admired its thin, pale-brown crust. Eating the crunchy delicacy, he wondered how the Chinese were able to produce such a fragile, yet crispy, crust. Then he noticed that his neighbour was eating the same thing. She was peeling hers. It was a hard-boiled egg.” 8 This explains the difficulties of the old age.
On the other hand, this reminds me of what someone once said, “One thing about getting old is that you can sing in the bathroom while brushing your teeth.” That’s a positive way of looking at it.
Even though this phase of life has its own difficulties, you can make the best use of this age. If you haven’t reached this age, plan it well much ahead. If you are already there, good! Enjoy it knowing what God wants you to be.
Like every phase of life, God has special design for your old age too. In fact, God considers this age as so important that He has promised in His Word, “Even to your old age I am He, and even to hair white with age will I carry you. I have made, and I will bear; yes, I will carry and will save you.” Isaiah 46:4.
You got married, had children, got them married, had grandchildren, retired from your job and what next? Relax happily ever after? Probably yes. But, you still have a very important role in this world and your family. You may have retired from your profession, but you haven’t retired from God-given responsibility yet, because He has a special design for your old age.
Psalm 92:14: [Growing in grace] they shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap [of spiritual vitality] and [rich in the] verdure [of trust, love, and contentment].
- Be planted in the Lord’s house
For most aged people, this is a time of rest. You have retired form your job and just have plenty of free time. Usually, people at this age join a recreation club, watch Television, read a newspaper, etc. and pass their time. For some, this can be the hardest period of life. They face rejection, loneliness, lack, sickness and so on. Whatever your situation may be, it’s a time to use your resourceful experiences for raising a godly generation.
“Wisdom doesn't automatically come with old age. Nothing does -- except wrinkles. It's true, some wines improve with age but only if the grapes were good in the first place.9”
Be planted in the Lord’s house so that you can be strong. Your source is in God like Psalm 1 says.
- Grow in the courts of God
When you are in the courts of God like Simeon and Anna, you will grow like a palm tree and grow high like a cedar in Lebanon. Do not be idle least it may lead you to sin. Spend time in the house of God, get busy with His kingdom, learn more of His word, spend more time in prayer and grow to newer heights in your spiritual lives.
- Bear fruit even when old
When a man was asked what he did all day since he had retired, he replied, "I just sit and think, and sit and think… and sometimes I just sit!" That's getting old in the worst way -- ceasing to live before we die. History records that many people made some of their greatest contributions to society after the age of 65 and you can be one.
God never intends for us to retire from spiritual activity. The Bible says we can "still bring forth fruit in old age", even as Jesus kept the "best wine" for the last at the wedding in Cana (John 2:10). Do something productive by writing, training, helping, advising, etc.
- Be filled with vitality and have many leaves
Titus 2:2-3 says, “2Urge the older men to be temperate, venerable (serious), sensible, self-controlled, and sound in the faith, in the love, and in the steadfastness and patience [of Christ]. 3Bid the older women similarly to be reverent and devout in their deportment as becomes those engaged in sacred service, not slanderers or slaves to drink. They are to give good counsel and be teachers of what is right and noble,”
As you live a moderate life and train young people by supplying the juices of your wisdom to the younger generation you are reproducing yourself, having many leaves.
Do not dread old age even though calling one aged is no good anymore. Because, aged doesn’t mean you are good for nothing. It is part of God’s design and it is a privilege and honor. It’s the phase of life where you are a treasure of experiences. Use them. Do not waste them.
If you are yet to see this age, plan it well. Do not dread it, rather wait for it with great anticipation.
YOUR PRAYER
Dear Lord, thank you for keeping me till this age. Help me use my experiences to be a blessing to the next generation. Help me always find strength and security in you and you alone. Amen.
Day#9
9. GROWING INTO GOD’S DESIGN FOR YOUR LIFE
We have come to the last lesson of this devotion. Congratulations. Remember, God has a special design for your life. God wants you to be you as a person. At the same time, He wants your image after the likeness of Christ. That is the eternal plan of God. That means, all that we have learned in detail will be explained today pointing to one statement, that is, “We are designed in the image of God.” Because, everything God has designed for your life, either the common design or individual uniqueness, should ultimately correspond to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Rom8:29: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son...” (KJV), “because Jesus is the express image of God.” (Heb 1:1-4, Col 1:15).
A. GOD CREATED MAN IN HIS IMAGE AND LIKENESS
The Bible says in Gen1:26-27:
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
The two words: image and likeness may be a little different from one another. Image means, to cut or hew, a shadowing forth, a phantom, a sketch or an outline.
On the other hand, likeness means, to be like, resemble.
The image refers to the natural qualities in man (reason, personality, etc.) that make him resemble God, while the likeness refers to the supernatural graces, e.g., ethical, that make the redeemed godlike. It also refers to the mental and spiritual faculties that man shares with his creator. Among the many suggestions are that the image of God resides in man’s reason, personality, free-will, self-consciousness, or his intelligence. The image of God in man makes him God’s representative on earth. It is also a capacity to relate to God.
Can you realize what God’s original intention for your life is? What happened to us? Why are we not longing to be what we are supposed to be? This is because, man fell short of the glory of God.
Genesis 3: 6-7: “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.”
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. (NLT).
Now, God is restoring His image in us. He is in the business of confirming us into the likeness of His Son. Since God had designed us in His image and likeness. He has Has a great redemptive plan to restore us from the fallen state.
Rom8:29: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son...”(KJV). “… because Jesus is the express image of God.” (Heb 1:1-4, Col 1:15)
What do we have to do in order to let God work in us? No matter what we have gone through, when God wants to use our good and bad experiences, let us do the following.
1. Open your mind
“In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” 2Co 4:4.
2. Let His Spirit work in you
“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2Co 3:18.
3. Let your mind be renewed
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Rom 12:2.
4. Put on a new man
Col:3:10-24 explains what it means to put on a new man. It means putting on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; charity (love, which is the bond of perfectness), peace of God (ruling in your hearts), thankfulness, the word of Christ, submission, obedience, singleness of heart and so on.
5. Have the mind of Christ
Phil 2:5: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus”
“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” I John 3:2-3 (NASV)
“Our Maker so designed us that our nature finds final satisfaction and fulfilment only in a relationship of responsive Godlikeness.10 ” Knowing God’s design for our lives is not good enough. We need to allow Him to change us, restore us and continually work in us so that we can be conformed in to the image of His Son. Will you let Him do that?
In closing…
Remember you are made with a special purpose. None of your experiences is out of the way. Neither you nor your everyday experiences are an accident to God. You are precious in His sight as you are so lovingly made by and your life is carefully planned for His purpose.
Work on yourself and let God work on you. May you grow more like Jesus each day you spend now on.
-------------------------
1 Silas Shotwell, in September, 1987, Homemade.
3 Waneta Grimes Holt, in The Junior Class Paper.
5 Leadership, Vol. 1, Number 4, p. 23.
6 Chinese Proverb in Bits & Pieces, July 25, 1992, p. 5.
7 Valerie L. Runyan, in Reader's Digest, December, 1992.
8 Contributed by Marylou Hughes, Reader's Digest, May, 1980.
9 Abigail Van Buren, Chicago Tribute-New York News Syndicate, quoted in Reader's Digest, May, 1980.
-------------------------
1 | Page
No comments:
Post a Comment