Challenge and Day of Praise

Challenge 1 - memorize and encourage everyone you see with the hope-filled truth of Romans 15:13. You'll need it for challenge #2.

Challenge 2 - The God of Hope sent His Only Son into the world at just the right time in countless ways, including the fact that Roman Roads throughout the vast Roman Empire made the personal spread of the Gospel easier than it ever could have been before. I challenge you to see your computer email and your cell-phone texting ability and other social media as the modern-day Roman Roads! Let's use our modern Roman Roads to personally spread the Gospel of Hope that we possess through faith in Jesus Christ and that the world has always sorely needed but is being awakened to its need in this day and age because of the health concerns that are pervading our cities, our country, and every nation in this world!

Tues, 03/17/20, "Day of Praise"

Matthew 5:13 - [Jesus said] "You are the salt of the earth."

My mom tells me that, when I was three years old, I would say that I was "Fwee." Furthermore, when somebody told me that I was three, then I'd say, "I'm not three; I'm fweeeeeee." In other words, I actually could say the right pronunciation, but I had myself convinced that the wrong pronunciation was correct.

And so it is with us all. Jesus says that we are the salt of the earth, which means, in sum, that God made us to be difference-makers. But we have ourselves convinced that life is too much and too hard. We, in essence, say, "I'm not salt; I'm small." We might as well be saying, "I'm not three; I'm fweeee." Being made in God's image, in our heart of hearts, we actually know who we are; we're salt, like Jesus says; we're difference-makers and world-changers; but we have ourselves convinced that we're something else altogether, namely, small and insignificant.

But no matter how much I insisted I was fwee, the truth remained that I was three. And no matter how much we insist that we're small and insignificant, the truth remains that we're the salt of the earth, world-changers, difference-makers, made in the strength and power and image of Almighty God!

So use your modern-day Roman Roads (which are your phone texts and your computer email) today, believing and calling others to believe that God's word about you (and all who have received Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord) is true. You are the salt of the earth! Get out there and encourage and give hope in Christ to (and therein change!!!) the world! Mmmm, let's go!

Praise God!