| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Lifelong learning” Our Bible verse for today: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10 (CSB) Our thought for today: “You were made for this” I like the way the New Living Translation (NLT) renders Ephesians 2:10. Rather than using the word “workmanship” it uses “masterpiece” – you are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for you to do. God created you to be the unique individual you are. Then He chose for you to be born and to live in this generation, instead of at any other time in history. And He chose for you to be in your country, in your state, and in your community, instead of anywhere else. If you are living your life in the center of God’s will then God has you where He wants you to be, and the reason is so you can do the good works in that place that He has planned for you to do. This is important. It reminds me of what Mordecai said to Esther in Esther 4:14, “… perhaps you have come to your royal position for a time such as this.” All of us have issues in life that are hard to deal with, and we all have people in our lives who depend on us to varying degrees. That by itself can make life challenging. But on top of that, our world today is a mess. It has been turned upside down. Boys are girls, girls are boys, wrong is right, bad is good, dark is light, and evil is celebrated. It seems that our society has followed Alice down the rabbit hole and the Mad Hatter is in charge. And there you are – in the middle of it all. Trying to make sense of it. Trying to be strong. Trying to keep yourself and your family from getting sucked into all the craziness, and trying to honor God by how you live. All this month we have been considering the value and importance of lifelong Biblical learning. We have talked about how such learning makes us wise in the ways of God and gives us the strength we need to be strong when being strong isn’t easy. Well, this is why we need it. Living effectively for Christ in the middle of all this, promoting Biblical values, and doing so in a Christlike manner can be hard. But don’t fear and don’t despair. As Paul teaches in Ephesians 2:10, God has prepared you for it. You can be strong and courageous, you can boldly advocate for Biblical values, and you can do it in a Christlike manner. The Holy Spirit will help you to do it. It’s no mistake that God has you where you are, in that place and at this time. He has a purpose for you being there. The truth is, you were made for this. God bless, Pastor Jim (If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville) |
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Oak Hill Baptist Church 
Very nice word for the day. I thank you, and I thank God for you. Have a blessed day.
Thank you Donna. May your day be blessed as well.
Thank you for your encouraging and relevant message! Blessings, Pastor Jim!
You’re very welcome Cindy. Thank you for the encouraging feedback.