Daily Devotional

[Ronnie W. Stark]

Bible Study Verses
John 9:24-27
So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, "Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner." He answered, "Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?" (ESV)

Thoughts
Are there mountain lions in Virginia? This is a pretty common question I hear from people. The official state answer is "No".

But, I know people who have seen them. The people I know who have seen them are men who are extremely seasoned outdoorsmen. I also know guys who are extremely knowledgeable of the outdoors who have collected footprints of a large cat.

So do I believe there are mountain lions in Virginia? Yes. Why because I trust the men who have seen them.
(Terry L)

Action Point
The man being questioned in the above scripture was born blind and Jesus healed him and gave him sight. This man was a living witness to the power of Christ. So imagine the weight his testimony had with people who knew him.

I always wonder when I read this verse how many people he ended up leading to God through his witness. I have never seen a mountain lion in Virginia, but I believe in them because of the witness of good men.

How many people can you touch in your daily life? "But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect," I Peter 3:15 (NIV).

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“Be humble and give more honor to others than to yourselves” (Philippians 2:3 NCV).

Pride destroys relationships. It shows up in a lot of different ways, like criticism, competition, stubbornness, and superficiality.

The problem with pride is it’s self-deceiving. Everybody else can see it in us but us. When you have a problem with pride, you don’t see it in your life.

Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride leads to destruction; a proud attitude brings ruin” (NCV). I love this verse in the Message paraphrase: “First pride, then the crash—the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.”

Pride destroys relationships, but humility is the antidote to pride. Humility builds relationships. The Bible says in 1 Peter 3:8, “Everyone must live in harmony, be sympathetic, love each other, have compassion, and be humble” (GW).

How are you and I going to grow in humility? It happens by letting Jesus Christ begin to control our thoughts and hearts and attitudes and reactions. He’s got to be a part of this. Ephesians 4:23-24 says, “Let the Spirit change your way of thinking and make you into a new person” (CEV).

How do you become a new person? How do you start to think in a different way? The basic law of relationships is this: You tend to become like the people you spend time with. If you spend time with grumpy people, you get grumpier. If you spend time with happy people, you get happier. If you want to have more humility, spend time with Jesus Christ. He is humble. He wants a relationship with you. He wants you to spend time with him in prayer and reading his Word and talking to him. He is humble, and as you get to know him, you’ll become more like him.

“Be humble and give more honor to others than to yourselves . . . You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to” (Philippians 2:3, 5-6 NCV/NLT).

No one has done anything more humble than Jesus, coming from heaven to Earth to become a man, live for us, give his life for us, and be resurrected for us. When you spend time with him, it makes you more humble, and that builds your relationships.

Talk About It

What are some of the common characteristics and habits of people you know that you would call humble?
How might you need to change the way you think about other people so you match what Jesus thinks?
What does it mean to give more honor to others than to yourself?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

Bible Study Verse
Ecclesiastes 4:9
Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. (NASB)

Thoughts
My son and I were sitting in our stand just before dark when we heard the shot ring out from a friend hunting nearby.

I said, "Let's get going; she'll need help loading up her kill." We got there just as she was reaching her four-wheeler and went to help her load up. She had shot a nice feral hog. Once loaded, we went back to our vehicle and followed her into camp.

On the drive, my son said, "Do you know why she got that hog?" Having seen nothing to shoot for days, my thoughts ran to, "It was the only thing that stepped out under her feeder."

Before I could make the flippant answer, my seven-year-old son quickly replied to his own question, "Because God blessed her."

That hit me hard. I was flooded with embarrassment over the shallowness of my own thoughts and pride over my young son's insight.
(Mary Ellen Q)

Action Point
Ah, the wisdom of the child.

As His disciples were trying to shoo away the children in Luke 18:15-17, Jesus said that the kingdom of God belongs to such as they--trusting, innocent, believing, dependent.

Dependent: dependent upon parents to provide food and shelter; dependent upon parents to provide guidance; dependent upon our Heavenly Father to provide our daily bread.

Are we dependent daily upon our Heavenly Father or our own self- sufficiency? Are we providing spiritual guidance for our children? When our children provide spiritual insight to us, do we listen and take heed?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14 NLT).

Jesus said in John 15:14, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (NLT).

You can’t say you love Jesus and then go live like the devil. You can’t say you’re a Christian and then keep on living a self-centered life. You can’t say you’re a follower of Jesus and then pick and choose the verses that you want to listen to and ignore the ones you don’t. Jesus says you’re his friend if you obey him and his commandments.

Why do we obey God? Nonbelievers get this wrong all the time. They say, “I don’t want to be a Christian, because I don’t want to obey God. You believers obey him out of guilt or fear or obligation, and I don’t want that for my life.”

Why do we really obey God? Because he loves us! He wants the best for us. He loves you like nobody else will ever love you. The Bible says the only reason there’s love in the world is because God is love. We don’t obey God out of fear or guilt or obligation. We obey God out of love, because he loved us and saved us.

When I was a kid in high school, a guy came up to me and said, “You’re restricted.” I said, “What do you mean?” He said, “Because you’re a Christian. You can’t do any of the fun stuff the rest of us do.”

I looked him in the eye and said, “I could take all the drugs I want to take. I could get stoned all I want to get stoned. I could drink all I want to drink. I could go to all the parties I want to go to. I could go to bed with as many women as I want. But here’s the difference: Jesus changed my want to.’” I didn’t want to do those things then. I don’t want to do those things now. They are cheap, phony thrills that seem to give a temporary kick to life, but then they kick back. They may look like freedom, but they don’t last, and they lead to despair, not dignity and depression, not delight.

John 15:9-11 says, “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me . . . When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”

God doesn’t want you to obey him because you’re afraid of him. He doesn’t want you to obey him because you’re scared of punishment. God wants you to obey him because of love. It’s his love that leads to true joy.

Talk About It

To obey, you have to know what God tells you to do. How can you know what God wants you to do?
How have you sometimes seen obedience to God as leading to restriction? In what ways have you seen obedience to God as leading to freedom?
How can parents teach their children to obey out of love and not fear? What would obeying out of love and not fear look like?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“Some of these people have missed the most important thing in life—they don’t know God” (1 Timothy 6:21 TLB).

The key to a friendship with God is deciding whose friendship you want most.

You don’t have time for everybody to be your friend. You’ve got to decide who you want most to be your best friend.

The Bible says in 1 Timothy 6:21, “Some of these people have missed the most important thing in life—they don’t know God” (TLB).

They know all the baseball scores. They know the stock market quotes. They know the top 10 songs. They know who’s in and who’s out in every soap opera. But they don’t know God. They missed the most important thing in life!

If you’re not a friend of God, it means you care about something else more. James 4:4 says, “You should know that loving the world is the same as hating God. Anyone who wants to be a friend of the world becomes God’s enemy” (NCV).

When James writes, “loving the world,” he means loving the value system of the world. God wants you to love people, but that doesn’t mean you have to love the world’s value system. We get so caught up in the distractions of life that we tend to do just the opposite. We love the world’s value system, but then we don’t love people. We love materialism. We love pleasure. We love popularity. We love prestige. We love passion, possessions, and position.

But God loves people, and he wants us to love them too. One way we show our love to others is to show an interest in their interests. In other words, what is important to you becomes important to me (always within the context of biblical truth).

If you’re going to be a friend of God, then you’ve got to care about what he cares about and stop caring about the things he doesn’t care about. God doesn’t care about your image. He’s not interested in your status. He’s interested in your character—not how you look but who you are. An essential step toward friendship with God means choosing to value what God values.

Talk About It

What gets in the way of you being a friend of God? What kind of adjustments could you make in your thoughts or behavior?
Is there something more important to you than knowing God? What is it? Why do you value it more?
Describe the relationship you have with your best friend. How does it compare to the relationship you have with God?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (Psalm 23:4 NIV).

You may not be in the valley of the shadow of death right now, but you may be in another valley. These are hard places on your journey, where it’s easy to doubt or overlook God’s goodness. But you can always trust that God walks through the valleys with you. And he’s promised to bring you through to the other side.

Psalm 23:4 says, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (NIV).

Here are three truths worth remembering when you are in the valley:

You are not alone; God is with you.
The shadows in your life are the evidence of the presence of light. How do you deal with a shadow? You turn your back to the shadow and look at the light. Jesus said, “I am the light for the world! Follow me, and you won’t be walking in the dark. You will have the light that gives life” (John 8:12 CEV).

The Bible says God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. You need to stop focusing on the things that scare you: those bills, those fears, those worries, that stuff that keeps swirling around in your mind. Move your focus off your fears so you can focus on the Father.

God has a good purpose for your valley.
God cannot do evil. Even when you’re facing problems, conflict, grief, fear, or failure, God is at work creating some good from your valley.

Romans 5:3-5 says, “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (ESV).

Remember: The reward will last forever.
You’re going to be rewarded for remaining faithful to Christ in the valley of failure, in the valley of fear, in the valley of conflict, in the valley of grief, in the valley of brokenness, and in the valley of trouble. You’ll be in heaven less than a minute before thinking, “What was I thinking? Why did I complain so much? Why did I worry when I was going through those valleys? God was right there with me all the time, and he was good to me all the time.”

The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:17, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!” (NLT).

Talk About It

What has you most afraid? What lies about those fears are you believing?
How can you be reminded of God’s goodness when you walk through your next valley or while you finish walking through the valley you’re in right now?
Why is it important to look for the good that God is working out while you’re in your valley and not just after you’ve come through to the other side?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

Bible Study Verses
Proverbs 4:3-9, 18-19
When I was a boy at my father's knee,
the pride and joy of my mother,
He would sit me down and drill me:
"Take this to heart. Do what I tell you-live!
Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding!
Don't forget one word! Don't deviate an inch!
Never walk away from Wisdom-she guards your life;
love her-she keeps her eye on you.
Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!
Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!
Throw your arms around her-believe me, you won't regret it;
never let her go-she'll make your life glorious.
She'll garland your life with grace,
she'll festoon your days with beauty."
The ways of right-living people glow with light;
the longer they live, the brighter they shine.
But the road of wrongdoing gets darker and darker-
travelers can't see a thing; they fall flat on their faces. (Message)

Thoughts
If you are a hunter, you must love tracking. It's one of the tools of our trade as a guide. We follow tracks and sign to find game and follow blood trails to find down game. We diligently look for clues to increase our odds of success. When there's no snow, we've gotten down on our hands and knees to find a speck of blood or decipher right direction.

God has left us many sign posts along the way of life, many warning signals. His Holy Spirit within us even prompts, convicts, encourages and guides. We have more experienced mentors all around us to help us.
(Wes W)

Action Point
I was on a gravel road near Laramie Peak, Wyoming, with Rex Peterson, a world-class lion and bear guide from LaSal, Utah. We were traveling in a pickup at approximately 30 MPH. Conditions were dry and sunny.

Rex said, "Stop!" Did you see that?"

"See what?" I thought. "Antelope? Elk? A hundred yards away, or a mile away?"

"Back up," he said. "Now do you see that?"

"Nope! Not a thing."

We got out of the truck. He sat on his haunches near the edge of the road. When I looked just right, it appeared that a barefoot man had crossed the road diagonally. It was a bear track.

I asked, "How did you see that at 30 MPH?"

He said, "It looked like a good crossing spot from one draw to another."
My observations:
He had been alert and looking.
He knew exactly what he was looking for.
He had seen that sign before.

I was definitely impressed; and he had my undivided attention. He has been a wonderful mentor - both as a hunting friend and a brother in Christ. You also should try to find a mature Christian man to grow in Christ and in the knowledge of God's creation.

Sportsmen's Tip of the Day
Find a trusted friend who will not only stretch you in outdoor endeavors, but in your faith.

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me” (John 15:5 CEV).

How do you rest in God’s goodness? How do you experience the abundant life he has for you?

Here are four daily habits that will help move you from overwhelmed to overflowing.

Stay connected to Jesus every day.
“I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me” (John 15:5 CEV).

If you try to go through life on your own power, you’re going to be overwhelmed. A toaster cannot fulfill its purpose unless it’s plugged in to the power. You cannot fulfill your purpose and enjoy God’s goodness unless you’re plugged in to his power.

Replace your complaining with gratefulness.
“Do everything without complaining and arguing” (Philippians 2:14 NLT).

Science has proven that complaining and practicing gratitude both have an impact on your health. Complaining is a deeply unhealthy emotion. On the other hand, studies have shown that gratitude is the healthiest emotion. It produces serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin in your brain—those are the chemicals that boost happiness and lower stress.

Stop being stingy, and start being generous.
“Bring the full amount of your tithes to the Temple, so that there will be plenty of food there. Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things” (Malachi 3:10 GNT).

God wired a universal law into the world: The more you give away, the more you’re going to get. He did that because he wants you to become more like him. God is a giver. Everything we have is the gift of God’s generosity. The more generous you are, the more God is going to bless you in every single area of your life. Your life will overflow!

Stop comparing, and start being content.
“It is better to be content with what little you have. Otherwise, you will always be struggling for more, and that is like chasing the wind” (Ecclesiastes 4:6 NCV).

Contentment is not abandoning your ambition. You ought to have ambition. You ought to make the most of what God has given you. Contentment doesn’t mean you don’t have any goals, dreams, or plans for your life. Contentment simply means you don’t need more in order to be happy. You’re happy right now with what you’ve been given. Contentment means your happiness doesn’t depend upon circumstances; it depends upon God, the Good Shepherd who has blessed you with every good gift.

By nature, we are discontent. But by God’s grace, we can rest content in his goodness to us. When you grasp that most things in your life are simply gracious gifts from God, your life will go from overwhelming to overflowing.

Talk About It

How does God give us his power?
How do you think social media affects your contentment?
For the next few days, make a commitment to not complain about anything. Every time you catch yourself complaining, redirect the complaint into thanks. Each day, note how often you were able to change your gripes to gratitude. What difference did it make?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. ‘For God loves a person who gives cheerfully’” (2 Corinthians 9:7 NLT).

Generosity isn’t about your wealth. It’s about your willingness to help others, to show love to others, and to honor God.

In 2 Corinthians 9:7, God gives us three characteristics of an authentic generosity: “You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. ‘For God loves a person who gives cheerfully’” (NLT).

This kind of biblical generosity is:

Always thoughtful. “You must each decide in your heart.” You need to think about how much you’re going to give. Don’t do it impulsively or emotionally. You make up your own mind, and you plan it.
Always voluntary. “Don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure.” Never, ever, ever give out of guilt. When you do, you don’t get credit for it, and it won’t grow your heart.
Always cheerful. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” If you can’t give cheerfully, then just don’t. Be a Grinch. Be a miser. Be a Scrooge. You don’t get any credit for giving unless you give to somebody cheerfully.
Be generous with your giving. Again, it’s not about the amount you give—it doesn’t have to be about money at all. You can be generous with your time or with your talents. Whatever you give, do it thoughtfully, voluntarily, and cheerfully.

Talk About It

Why would God want you to think through and plan for how you’re going to give?
Would you call your giving sacrificial? Why or why not?
What are some specific ways you can be more generous with your time this week?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

Bible Study Verse
For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring. (NKJV)

Thoughts
Jessie was what you might consider a normal teenage boy. By all appearances, he was just like any other fifteen year old. If you assumed that, you would be wrong.

Jessie's parents died tragically in an accident when he was ten years old and he was taken from his home in the big city and placed with his grandfather far back in the Ozark Mountains.

Jessie's grandfather was a wise and Godly old man who loved Jessie with all his heart. He taught Jessie to hunt those majestic hills and to catch fish from the creeks, lakes, and rivers. He taught Jessie to raise a garden and to preserve the vegetables for winter. Jessie was well cared for, and he loved his grandfather, but he was hollow on the inside. He was bitter and alone. He was thirsty and dry on the inside.

One day, Jessie and his grandfather went to one of their favorite places. It was a huge rock that overlooked a beautiful clear lake. Many times before, grandfather had brought him here. Sometimes they would scramble down to the lake below and fish. Sometimes they would bring the old .410 shotgun and shoot squirrels. Sometimes they would just talk.

Today, grandfather reached inside his old coat and pulled out a tattered Bible. There, sitting on that big rock, overlooking that vast lake, Jesus Christ changed Jessie on the inside. He was dry and thirsty and God gave him water - and not just a little - Jesus sent a flood into a dry desert that forever changed the condition of the heart and the eternal destination of the soul.
(Brian H)

Action Point
Life is tough.

The man or woman who tries to shoot the rapids of life alone will quickly find themselves wandering in a spiritual desert, devoid of peace and joy - dying of spiritual thirst.

Our God has a habit - a character trait, really - of giving more than we ever ask for and more than we can ever dream of. When we need a drink of water, God doesn't just hand us a cup that refreshes only our dry and parched throat, but rather, He pours water on us that quenches our thirst and washes the dust off of us and thoroughly refreshes us. He goes above and beyond what we ask and gives us instead what we really need. He does this in two ways:

For the non-Christian: This is where we all are or were at some point. Jesus loved us so much that he didn't just come up with a plan to save us, but rather, he put his plan in action to become the substitutionary sacrifice for our sins. He didn't send someone to save us, he came and did it himself as only he was qualified to do. Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior brings a flood of spiritual water to a barren desert and causes that desert to bloom with new life.
For the Christian: Nobody ever said that life would be smooth sailing once you become a Christian. That's simply not the truth. Life is still tough. But when we reach the end of our strength and we fall, hopelessly weary and totally spent, into His arms, he doesn't just give us a drink to refresh us, he pours water on us and lavishes His love upon us.
How great is our God to do more than just give us a little sip of His goodness but to pour out His love, compassion, strength, and renewal upon us!

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“The LORD watches over all who love him” (Psalm 145:20 NIV).

When God fills you to overflowing, you never need to fear the future. His goodness and mercy are with you every day. You’re following the Good Shepherd, and he is out in front of you with his rod and staff. And at the back of the flock are a couple of sheepdogs—goodness and mercy—nipping at your heels, making sure you don’t run off into a ravine. These two sheepdogs keep you on track as you follow the Good Shepherd.

God’s goodness is watching over you.

Did you know that a second has never passed in your life when God was not watching you? God is always paying attention to you, because he created you to love you. He knows the highs and lows, the good and the bad, the ups and the downs. God knows every detail of your life.

Psalm 145:20 says, “The Lord watches over all who love him” (NIV).

Not only does he watch over you, he also protects you. Did you know the Bible says that God even sends his angels to protect you wherever you go (Psalm 91:11)?

God’s protection doesn’t mean that only good things will happen to you. Suffering and disappointment will still come your way. But God will ensure that good will come out of everything that happens to you—whether or not you’re able to see in this lifetime how he has been working.

God’s grace is working in you.

The Bible says in Isaiah 60:10, “I will have mercy on you through my grace” (TLB).

Grace is when God gives you what you don’t deserve. Mercy is when God doesn’t give you what you do deserve. For all the ways you’ve sinned, failed, and made mistakes, you deserve punishment. Yet God pardons you and forgives you through Christ—that’s mercy.

It is God’s nature to be merciful. He loves to show his mercy. He doesn’t get bored with it. He doesn’t get tired of it. He doesn’t get frustrated that you keep coming back for more. God doesn’t say, “Okay, on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, we’ll give goodness, and on Tuesday and Thursday, we’ll give mercy, and on Saturday and Sunday, you’re on your own.” He’s with you every moment of every day.

Nobody knows what’s going to happen next week, much less next year or in the next 10 years. But when you face the future, you can know this: God will fill your life to overflowing and his goodness and mercy will be with you. There is no need to fear.

Talk About It

Read Psalm 103:2-13, and write down or talk about all the ways God shows his mercy.
How does a right view of God’s mercy affect your contentment with your life?
If you truly believed God was always working for your good, what would you have the courage to do for him?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“For as you know him better, he will give you, through his great power, everything you need for living a truly good life: he even shares his own glory and his own goodness with us!” (2 Peter 1:3 TLB).

The vast majority of people pay no attention to eternity. They’re living for the here and now, which is a waste, because everything that’s “here and now” isn’t going to matter in five minutes, much less 50 years—and certainly not for eternity. If we stretched a rope from California to Tokyo, and that represented all of eternity, your life on Earth would be represented by less than one millimeter.

So how do you live in light of eternity? You live for God’s glory, because he’s going to share his glory with you in heaven.

The Bible says in 2 Peter 1:3, “For as you know him better, he will give you, through his great power, everything you need for living a truly good life: he even shares his own glory and his own goodness with us!” (TLB).

You don’t get to choose what’s going to happen to you the rest of your life. But you do get to choose how you respond. You can face the future as a cynic, as a critic, as a pessimist, or as a doubter. You can face the future expecting the worst and experiencing the worst. You can face your future being ungracious to other people, and you can live for the glory of yourself.

Or you can face the future with gratitude, generosity, and graciousness and live for the glory of God. Which one do you think will make you happier? Which one do you think will make you more successful? Which one do you think will bring a smile to God and the reward of heaven?

Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (ESV).

We were created because God wants a family. He wants to spend eternity with his family. He wants to spend eternity with you and me! Heaven is one of the most important reasons Christians can be joyful—God has given us eternal life, and heaven will be amazing!

Talk About It

In what ways does God use your time on Earth to prepare you for eternity?
How does being grateful and generous make you happier?
When you expect the worst in life, what does that say about what you believe about God?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

Bible Study Verses
Psalms 17:4-5
Though people tried to bribe me, I have kept myself from the ways of the violent through what your lips have commanded. My steps have held to your paths; my feet have not stumbled.(NIV)

Thoughts
Have you ever seen a mountain goat jump from rock to rock or climb straight up the side of a mountain? They do it with very little effort. If we tried that same climb, we would need ropes, bolts, anchors, and safety equipment.

God has given mountain goats their own specialized equipment. Their hooves have a hard outer shell with a rubbery concave foot pad that acts like a suction cup when they put weight on it. Not even the most expensive pair of vibram-soled hunting boots can compare to the foot of a mountain goat.
(Ron T)

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“Let us think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24 NCV).

Awesome families teach their kids that they’re not the center of the universe. They teach their kids that God made them and shaped them for a mission. They model dedication, service, generosity, and prayer. Average families don’t do those things. Awesome families do.

I am the man that I am today first of all because of my parents. They instilled in me certain values to care about other people.

My parents were very, very poor, but they both had the gift of hospitality. They loved to give to others even though they didn’t have much. We lived out in the country, and my dad would plant an acre garden with all kinds of vegetables. There was no way our family could eat all that food, but he did it just so he could give it away, because he didn’t have any money to give away. So we always planted more and then gave it away to help other people who were in need.

Our home was constantly filled with other people. If people were in pain, they were at our house. If they were on the road, they were at our house. If they were going through a conflict, they were at our house. If they were a well-known Christian leader coming through town, they were at our house. One day my dad added up how many meals my mom had cooked for guests in our home in one year. It was over a thousand meals! I grew up learning an attitude of “give your life away” and that it’s not about me. It’s about helping other people.

That’s what awesome families do. They teach each other to show love and to do good deeds. Good deeds are called ministry. They are called service.

A good example of this is Cornelius’ family in the book of Acts: “He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly” (Acts 10:2 NIV).

What a great legacy! Wouldn’t you like to have people writing that about you and your family one day?

Whether you have children or not, God wants you to leave a legacy like that. You’ll find people younger in age—or younger in the faith—all around you. Will you take the time to help others become what God has made them to be? Would you help them discover God’s mission for their life?

Talk About It

What kind of legacy do you want to leave? How are you working toward leaving that kind of legacy?
If you don’t have children, who are the young people in your life whom you can encourage to live out their purpose and help others?
What keeps you from opening up your home to others?

[Ronnie W. Stark]

“Let us think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24 NCV).

Awesome families teach their kids that they’re not the center of the universe. They teach their kids that God made them and shaped them for a mission. They model dedication, service, generosity, and prayer. Average families don’t do those things. Awesome families do.

I am the man that I am today first of all because of my parents. They instilled in me certain values to care about other people.

My parents were very, very poor, but they both had the gift of hospitality. They loved to give to others even though they didn’t have much. We lived out in the country, and my dad would plant an acre garden with all kinds of vegetables. There was no way our family could eat all that food, but he did it just so he could give it away, because he didn’t have any money to give away. So we always planted more and then gave it away to help other people who were in need.

Our home was constantly filled with other people. If people were in pain, they were at our house. If they were on the road, they were at our house. If they were going through a conflict, they were at our house. If they were a well-known Christian leader coming through town, they were at our house. One day my dad added up how many meals my mom had cooked for guests in our home in one year. It was over a thousand meals! I grew up learning an attitude of “give your life away” and that it’s not about me. It’s about helping other people.

That’s what awesome families do. They teach each other to show love and to do good deeds. Good deeds are called ministry. They are called service.

A good example of this is Cornelius’ family in the book of Acts: “He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly” (Acts 10:2 NIV).

What a great legacy! Wouldn’t you like to have people writing that about you and your family one day?

Whether you have children or not, God wants you to leave a legacy like that. You’ll find people younger in age—or younger in the faith—all around you. Will you take the time to help others become what God has made them to be? Would you help them discover God’s mission for their life?

Talk About It

What kind of legacy do you want to leave? How are you working toward leaving that kind of legacy?
If you don’t have children, who are the young people in your life whom you can encourage to live out their purpose and help others?
What keeps you from opening up your home to others?