The Upper Room Daily Devotional of Nashville, Tennessee, United States "Changing Course" for Thursday, 14 September 2017 - Read 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12-------
1 Thessalonians 4:1 Therefore, brothers, just as you learned from us how you had to live in order to please God, and just as you are living this way now, we ask you — indeed, united with the Lord Yeshua, we urge you — to keep doing so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you on the authority of the Lord Yeshua. 3 What God wants is that you be holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality, 4 that each of you know how to manage his sexual impulses in a holy and honorable manner, 5 without giving in to lustful desires, like the pagans who don’t know God. 6 No one should wrong his brother in this matter or take advantage of him, because the Lord punishes all who do such things — as we have explained to you before at length. 7 For God did not call us to live an unclean life but a holy one. 8 Therefore, whoever rejects this teaching is rejecting not a man but God, indeed, the One who gives you the Ruach HaKodesh, which is his.
9 Concerning love for the brothers we do not need to write you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other; 10 and you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do it even more.
11 Also, make it your ambition to live quietly, to mind your own business and to earn your living by your own efforts — just as we told you. 12 Then your daily life will gain the respect of outsiders, and you will not be dependent on anyone.
-------1 Thessalonians 4:1 Therefore, brothers, just as you learned from us how you had to live in order to please God, and just as you are living this way now, we ask you — indeed, united with the Lord Yeshua, we urge you — to keep doing so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you on the authority of the Lord Yeshua. 3 What God wants is that you be holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality, 4 that each of you know how to manage his sexual impulses in a holy and honorable manner, 5 without giving in to lustful desires, like the pagans who don’t know God. 6 No one should wrong his brother in this matter or take advantage of him, because the Lord punishes all who do such things — as we have explained to you before at length. 7 For God did not call us to live an unclean life but a holy one. 8 Therefore, whoever rejects this teaching is rejecting not a man but God, indeed, the One who gives you the Ruach HaKodesh, which is his.
9 Concerning love for the brothers we do not need to write you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other; 10 and you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do it even more.
11 Also, make it your ambition to live quietly, to mind your own business and to earn your living by your own efforts — just as we told you. 12 Then your daily life will gain the respect of outsiders, and you will not be dependent on anyone.
Brothers and sisters, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus to keep living the way you already are and even do better. (1 Thessalonians 4:1 (CEB))
The Cávado River is a small river that follows a linear course through Portugal. Its presence provided sustenance to an old settlement for thousands of years. The river has always been important to the life and livelihood of the people around it. In the 1960s, a large dam was built that changed everything around the river. The regional microclimate changed. The presence of large amounts of water in the reservoir reduced the area’s extreme temperatures. It created an efficient source of power. With the electricity came refrigerators, radio, telephone, TV, and Internet — radically changing people’s lives.
So it is when our lives are changed by Christ’s presence. We can direct our potential as God’s children to the service of others. Those who accept Christ can change everything around them. Like the dam, Christ changes the courses of our lives for the better. Rather than being lost, each person’s potential is put to a new use, a new flow, a new path that transforms us and those around us.
The Author: Emanuel Dinis (Portugal)
Thought for the Day: Today I will follow God in the service of others.
Prayer: Creator and Sustainer of all life, help us to grow in the image of Christ so that we can be a blessing for those around us. Amen.
Prayer focus: Those without electricity
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