Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Healthy Living”
Our Bible verse for today: “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Serving others is one of the healthiest things we can do.”
Having the proper focus in life is one of the keys to living a life that is healthy and balanced. As we continue to work on areas in our own lives that need improvement, we must be careful not to become self-absorbed and focused exclusively on ourselves.
Let’s remember that the primary reason we are to take good care of our bodies is because Jesus wants to use our physical body as an instrument of ministry. We are to be the hands and feet of Jesus. It is through the physical bodies of His followers that Jesus performs most of His ministry in the world today.
That being the case, even while our thoughts are focused on personal improvement, we must also be focused on serving the Lord by serving others. In Matthew 25:40 Jesus said, “I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for me.”
In their book “Hope Again: A 30-day plan for conquering depression.” Mark Sutton and Bruce Hennigan write about how one of the most effective strategies for dealing with depression is to take our eyes off of our own problems and focus instead on being a blessing to others. They write, “Invest your time and energy on something outside of yourself … Invest your time and energy in something that is bigger than yourself.”
That is a very effective strategy for dealing with depression but it is also the basic call for the follower of Christ – serve God by serving others. The primary reason we are to take good care of ourselves is so we can be of service to others in the name of Jesus.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 