Tag Archives: Rick Warren

Parting Words From The WORD…

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By Vonda Skelton | March 21, 2014
Laughing Jesus by Robert Wilson, Sr.

Laughing Jesus by Robert Wilson, Sr.

Last Sunday night I had the joy to sharing a devotion with the AWANA kids at our church. It’s an honor to be able to bring the Word of God to the little children that Jesus instructs us to be like!

I never know what God is going to allow me to share with them. There isn’t a topic list to follow or a calendar of lessons, at least not in our church. Instead, it’s similar to what God does every week with Parting Words From The WORD. I simply share something from what the Lord is doing or has done in my own life. This week’s AWANA message was no different.

As I considered what God has been teaching me through our church-wide Bible study, 40 Days in the Word by Rick Warren, I realized the lesson was something even a child could understand:

We’re not only to love the Word and learn the Word, but we’re to live the Word as well. We’re to apply it to our own lives, giving it permission to change us from the inside out. That’s what scripture has done and continues to do in me.

I remembered–and shared with the children–the first time I found Romans 12:18.

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:18 (NIV)

God showed me that verse and its application to my life way back in 1982 or so when I truly gave my life to Him. I had been in church all my life, walking an aisle at 9 years old with a Bible that carried no meaning, and walking out the door the same way I came. But about 25 years later, after God truly entered my heart and mind, the Bible had new meaning, and this verse was an integral part of the change.

Simple, straightforward, as if written for a child, this verse showed me the responsibility we all have to work toward peace with others. As one who had a sharp tongue and a judgmental heart, this truth was a new concept to me.

Live at peace? With everyone? Not one-up-man-ship? Not cutting others down? Not proving I can do it better, faster, prettier than the next guy?

Romans 12:18 became my guiding verse for that first year or two as I began to learn the art and heart of gentleness. Notice I say I began to learn it. I’m sorry to say, it will be an ongoing, lifelong process for me.

But the good news is, through that verse, God’s Word made a direct, visible change in my life…just as it should.

I shared Romans 12:18 and several other verses with the AWANA kids, and they got it. They easily grasped the concept of loving, learning, and living the Word by applying it to their lives.

What about you? Can you point to a verse in God’s Word that had a life-changing effect on your heart, mind, and spirit? If so, I’d love for you to share it here. Who knows–it could be a life-changing verse for someone else.

And today, as I ask God to bless the work of your hands and your hearts, I’m also asking Him to bless you with peace…at least as far as it depends on me.

Vonda

(Image art courtesy of Robert Wilson Fine Art)

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Parting Words From The WORD…

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By Vonda Skelton | March 14, 2014
Laughing Jesus by Robert Wilson, Sr.

Laughing Jesus by Robert Wilson, Sr.

I love how God shows us stuff from His word and then allows us to encourage others with the very thing He’s just shown to us!

Our church is currently doing Rick Warren’s 40 Days in the Word: Love the Word. Learn the Word. Live the Word. In my quiet time this week, I was reading the miracle of the loaves and fishes again. Each week’s lesson uses a different technique for memorization, understanding, and application of the Word. This week’s technique instructs us to read a specific passage of scripture, insert ourselves in the story as various characters, and then envision the story as a movie we’re in. (I love that part since that’s one of the ways I teach writing!)

Then it asks how the passage applies to our lives, and what are we–what am I–going to do about it.

I envisioned myself as the little boy with the lunch. I had the lunch that day only because my mom had made it for me. Nothing I did created the miracle.

At that point, I realized that even though the little boy was a huge part of the story, he was only a conduit for the delivery of the miracle. He wasn’t responsible for feeding all those people. He was only responsible for giving to Jesus what had been given to him.

The truth is, Jesus could have done that miracle with the lunch or without it. But He chose to use that little boy to make it happen.

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. Mark 6:41 (NIV)

What a great reminder to all of us as speakers and writers! We all have gifts and talents. Not because of anything we did, but because they were given to us, just as the lunch was given to the little boy.

It’s our responsibility to turn around and give them back to Him to use as He sees fit. And, like with the loaves and fishes, Jesus can use us as conduits for the delivery of miracles.

What miracle might He do with our paltry gift offerings? Those things that were given to us?

We don’t know. All we know is that we’re to be prepared, go, and give…and He’ll take care of the rest!

Now what are we going to do about it?

I pray God’s blessing on the work of your hands and your hearts,

Vonda

(Image art courtesy of Robert Wilson Fine Art)

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