The Holy Bible – The Good News Translation
1 Corinthians 14:1
Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy.
My Thoughts:
Over recent days our studies seem to have highlighted Paul's teaching to the church at Corinth, and this may be because we see so many similarities to our church today! God spoke to me through this verse today in conjunction with the ending of verses 4 and 5, where Paul emphasized that these gifts are for the uplifting of the church, not ourselves. So based on the verses referenced, I would humbly suggest: desire the gifts of the Spirit that are available to you, pray for them and be anxious to receive them. However should you be blessed with one or more gifts, remember, it is not for personal gain or bragging, but for the benefit of others and for the glory of God. I believe that God will use these gifts to enrich His church; to encourage those that you come into contact with and you are especially at a loss for words; to help someone when, ordinarily, you may feel very inadequate to handle such a thing. Friends, I am convinced that when we set self aside and allow God to freely work through us, we will be amazed at what He will do through a humble, fully surrendered individual. Are you willing to give this a try? Just let go, and let God have His way in and through! After all, God has a lot of work to do in this old sinful world, and I believe that He would just as soon fulfill His promise to touch hearts, take care of the weary and challenge the unsaved through us who belong to Him. He just wants our availability, not our abilities!
My Prayer:
Father, You are so wonderful to us! You have blessed us with the gift of Your Son, Jesus, and yet You continue to shower us with gifts through Your blessed Holy Spirit. How can we ever thank You enough? I am personally very thankful for all that You do for me each day, and I am thankful for the gifts that You have already allowed me to use for Your service and for the benefit of others. Please continue to work in our lives, so that we may not gloat about our gifts, but rather, use them for the benefit of Your church and for Your glory. To God be the glory for any and all things accomplished through the miracles of the Holy Spirit working in and through us. Lord, may You be lifted up, magnified and glorified through me, and all those meditating on this devotional today, is my humble prayer that I ask through Jesus, my Lord, AMEN!
**If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please speak with a local Bible Teaching pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com so that we can pray with you and give you help and or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Any words underlined above will indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray.
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