***Please Read Today***

Scripture: My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.  1 Corinthians 2:4,5 NIV

Observation: Paul gives credit to God for being the strength behind his teaching.

Application: Paul, the apostle that wrote a great portion of the New Testament knew that it was not through his own intellect that he taught.  He knew that it was by the Spirit of God that he was able to teach.  We must take solace in the fact that God is the power that gives us wisdom…

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I have to stop today’s SOAP right here because I am not writing it with a glad heart. I believe that when ever Laurie or I write anything in this devotional we are writing about what God has shown us that day.  I believe that today is no different for me.  I believe that God intended for me to write about being bold in wisdom because God gives us the power to be that.
I do all of my studying, reading, writing and research for this devotional on my phone. I write out my rough draft and email it to some of my family. I take that email after it arrives onto my computer and copy it into our blog where it is tweaked before it is posted. I truly believe that the Lord gave the above scripture to me to write about today.  However, in the process of researching to find some scripture for it I hit a brick wall with the internet. Nothing I tried to search for revealed the results I wanted.  I knew a certain scripture existed and I knew that it would aid me in making my point but I couldn’t find it.  I started to become more and more frustrated until I found myself sitting in the front room stewing about it.  I told Laurie that I was actually getting mad.  Getting mad writing a God-inspired devotional. Is that great or what?  What a Christ-like attitude!  We stopped immediately and prayed for clarity of thought and for Satan to be removed from this situation.  So after a bit of down time it occurred to me that maybe God wanted me to change course.  I believe that I need to apologize to all of you first for failing so miserably.  Further I believe that I am to let you know that Satan is alive and well and more than willing to get in the middle of our lives, even our morning devotions.  God has his hands full with a guy like me. This mess today has reminded me that “…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22,23 NIV Patience, patience, patience…I must pray for patience.

Prayer: Father, I’m sorry that my impatience ruined the word that you gave me today. Help me to exercise patience in all aspects of my life now and in the future.  Forgive me for failing you today. Amen

Doug