our daily bread
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Dexu Xia
Jan 13, 2018, 2:42:05 AM1/13/18
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Fitting In
Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. Malachi 3:16
Lee is a diligent and reliable bank employee. Yet he often finds himself sticking out like a sore thumb for living out his faith. This reveals itself in practical ways, such as when he leaves the break room during an inappropriate conversation. At a Bible study, he shared with his friends, “I fear that I’m losing promotion opportunities for not fitting in.”
Believers during the prophet Malachi’s time faced a similar challenge. They had returned from exile and the temple had been rebuilt, but there was skepticism about God’s plan for their future. Some of the Israelites were saying, “It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements . . . ? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it” (Malachi 3:14–15).
Lord, help us to keep on encouraging one another to stay faithful to You in this faithless world.
How can we stand firm for God in a culture that tells us we will lose out if we don’t blend in? The faithful in Malachi’s time responded to that challenge by meeting with like-minded believers to encourage each other. Malachi shares this important detail with us: “The Lord listened and heard” (v. 16).
God notices and cares for all who fear and honor Him. He doesn’t call us to “fit in” but to draw closer to Him each day as we encourage each other. Let’s stay faithful!
Lord, help us to keep on encouraging one another to stay faithful to You in this faithless world.
Our faith may be tested so that we may trust God’s faithfulness.
和而不同
那时，敬畏耶和华的彼此谈论，耶和华侧耳而听。-玛拉基书3章16节
李先生是个勤奋尽责的银行职员。然而他发现，当他要在工作中活出信仰时，常常显得突兀不群。例如，当同事在休息室谈论不雅的话题时，他会选择离开。他在查经小组中跟大家提到，他很担心自己会因为没有融入群体，而失去升迁的机会。
在先知玛拉基那个时代的信徒，也面对类似的挑战。以色列百姓从被掳之地返回，并重建圣殿，但他们对于上帝的带领依然存疑。有些以色列百姓还说：“事奉上帝是徒然的，遵守上帝所吩咐的，……有什么益处呢？如今我们称狂傲的人为有福，并且行恶的人得建立。他们虽然试探上帝，却得脱离灾难。”（玛拉基书3章14-15节）
在这个鼓吹若不附和众议就会被淘汰的文化中，我们如何才能为上帝站立得住？在玛拉基的时代，信仰坚定的人对这项挑战所做出的回应，就是与其他敬畏上帝的人一起聚会、互相鼓励。玛拉基还特别提到很重要的一点：“耶和华侧耳而听。”（16节）
上帝关注并看顾那些敬畏且尊崇祂的人。祂不是要我们附和众议，而是要我们互相鼓励，每天与祂更加亲近。让我们持续坚守信心吧！
主啊，求祢让我们在这不信的世界里，不断彼此激励，持守对祢的信心。
信心的考验让我们更倚靠信实的上帝
Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. Malachi 3:16
Lee is a diligent and reliable bank employee. Yet he often finds himself sticking out like a sore thumb for living out his faith. This reveals itself in practical ways, such as when he leaves the break room during an inappropriate conversation. At a Bible study, he shared with his friends, “I fear that I’m losing promotion opportunities for not fitting in.”
Believers during the prophet Malachi’s time faced a similar challenge. They had returned from exile and the temple had been rebuilt, but there was skepticism about God’s plan for their future. Some of the Israelites were saying, “It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements . . . ? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it” (Malachi 3:14–15).
Lord, help us to keep on encouraging one another to stay faithful to You in this faithless world.
How can we stand firm for God in a culture that tells us we will lose out if we don’t blend in? The faithful in Malachi’s time responded to that challenge by meeting with like-minded believers to encourage each other. Malachi shares this important detail with us: “The Lord listened and heard” (v. 16).
God notices and cares for all who fear and honor Him. He doesn’t call us to “fit in” but to draw closer to Him each day as we encourage each other. Let’s stay faithful!
Lord, help us to keep on encouraging one another to stay faithful to You in this faithless world.
Our faith may be tested so that we may trust God’s faithfulness.
和而不同
那时，敬畏耶和华的彼此谈论，耶和华侧耳而听。-玛拉基书3章16节
李先生是个勤奋尽责的银行职员。然而他发现，当他要在工作中活出信仰时，常常显得突兀不群。例如，当同事在休息室谈论不雅的话题时，他会选择离开。他在查经小组中跟大家提到，他很担心自己会因为没有融入群体，而失去升迁的机会。
在先知玛拉基那个时代的信徒，也面对类似的挑战。以色列百姓从被掳之地返回，并重建圣殿，但他们对于上帝的带领依然存疑。有些以色列百姓还说：“事奉上帝是徒然的，遵守上帝所吩咐的，……有什么益处呢？如今我们称狂傲的人为有福，并且行恶的人得建立。他们虽然试探上帝，却得脱离灾难。”（玛拉基书3章14-15节）
在这个鼓吹若不附和众议就会被淘汰的文化中，我们如何才能为上帝站立得住？在玛拉基的时代，信仰坚定的人对这项挑战所做出的回应，就是与其他敬畏上帝的人一起聚会、互相鼓励。玛拉基还特别提到很重要的一点：“耶和华侧耳而听。”（16节）
上帝关注并看顾那些敬畏且尊崇祂的人。祂不是要我们附和众议，而是要我们互相鼓励，每天与祂更加亲近。让我们持续坚守信心吧！
主啊，求祢让我们在这不信的世界里，不断彼此激励，持守对祢的信心。
信心的考验让我们更倚靠信实的上帝
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