Showing posts with label Asking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Asking. Show all posts

Sunday, May 23, 2010

I Shall Not Want

Before they were a week old, the eaglets were fighting over food. Neither was strong enough to hold up his head for more than a few seconds, so the pair looked like fuzzballs with bobble-heads attached. But whenever the parents brought food to the nest, the bigger eaglet was quick to peck down his brother to keep him from getting a single bite. His aggression would have been understandable if food was scarce, or if the parents couldn’t be trusted to supply what he needed. But nothing could be further from the truth. The eaglets were being fed fish many times their size; there was more than enough for both of them.
The greedy eaglet reminds me of our own foolishness when we try to get for ourselves something that belongs to someone else (James 4:1-5). Conflicts erupt because we want something that God has given to a friend, colleague, relative, or neighbor. Instead of asking God for what we need, we try to get what He’s given to someone else (v.2). But God has something good for each of us. We don’t need what belongs to anyone else. And we certainly never need to harm anyone to get what we need.
Our loving heavenly Father has more than enough for everyone. — Julie Ackerman Link
The secret of contentment is
To let the Lord supply;
Just do your part and put God first
And on His Word rely. —D. De Haan

Our needs will never exhaust God’s supply.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Understand One Another

One of the best ways for a man to love his wife is to understand her. Peter explains that it is imperative for a husband to “dwell with [his wife] with understanding” (1 Peter 3:7).

This principle works both ways. Husbands want to be understood as well. Actually, we all do. Everyone, married or not, longs to be understood by others at the deepest possible level. We’re born with that need, and we never seem to outgrow it.

It’s feeble avoidance to say we can’t understand one another. We can and we must. It takes time—time spent in one another’s presence asking questions, listening intently, then asking again. It’s as simple and as difficult as that. No one, of course, can fully plumb the mystery of another person’s heart, but we can learn something new every day. The wise man of Proverbs called understanding “a wellspring of life” (16:22), a deep source of wisdom to all who seek it.

Again, I say, understanding takes time—one of the most precious gifts we can give to others. How we choose to spend our time is the surest indicator of how much we care for those we love.

Ask the Lord today to give you the grace to take the time to understand the important people in your life. — David H. Roper

To those whose lives we touch in life,
To whom our love we would impart,
The greatest gift that we can give
May be an understanding heart
. —Branon

Listening is an open door to understanding.

October 7, 2009
http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/our-daily-bread/2009/10/07/devotion.aspx