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Transcription
The main message from this transcription is that being trustworthy and diligent in small tasks and opportunities in life is important. If we are faithful in doing our part, God can use that to make a significant difference in the lives of others. We should be grateful for every opportunity to serve God's kingdom and use our resources to bless others. The transcription also includes a story about an 82-year-old businessman who learned the value of hard work and wise money management from a young age, and how he used his wealth to help others and grow the kingdom of God. The lesson is that if we are faithful in small situations, we will be given more opportunities to learn and bless others, but if we are dishonest or cut corners, we won't be trusted with more important things. Welcome to Christchurch's Daily Devotion for March 17, 2024. Today we will be reading from Luke chapter 16, verses 10 through 15. Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own? No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. The Pharisees who loved money heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. He said to them, You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God's sight. I was recently at a conference where an 82-year-old businessman inspired us. In his lifetime, he had led 11 different companies, in some cases rescuing them from struggles, and in other situations simply taking them to new levels of productivity. He told about starting out before he was about 10 years old with a newspaper route. His parents taught him to give one-third of his money to the church and put one-third of it into savings, and he could spend the rest of it. He learned many lessons in that simple beginning, not just the least of which was to work hard and be wise in how he used his money. As he continued to grow in these lessons, he became a very successful businessman. But just as importantly, he has used his wealth to help many people and to help grow the kingdom of God. Jesus' lesson here is simple, yet powerful. If we are faithful and diligent in the small situations of life, we will be given more and more opportunities to learn and grow and bless other people. The opposite is also true. If we are dishonest or cut corners in the small tasks and opportunities of life, nobody is going to trust us with the things that matter most. Be thankful for each and every opportunity you have to serve the kingdom of Christ in any way. No matter how small something may seem, when you are faithful in doing your part, God can use that to make a huge difference in the lives of other people. Be constantly on the lookout for how you can use your resources to further his kingdom and bless other people. Your personal worship option today is to offer a prayer or one in your own words. Generous God, thank you for opportunities you regularly give me to serve your kingdom and bless other people. Thank you for all that you have given me. Help me always make what I have available for your use. In Jesus' name, amen.
