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Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 10:25

Posted on July 26, 2021

And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near – Hebrews 10:25 (NLT)

Today’s Bible verse gives us a challenge. It challenges us to not stop meeting together and going to church. In life, it can be really easy to want to just sleep in instead of going to church. Maybe you had to work late the night before, or are just wanting to enjoy your weekend. Perhaps your friends are doing something fun that you’d rather be doing than going to church. Whatever the case is, its easy to stop going to church. But this verse challenges us to not do that.

Going to church is a great way to keep yourself encouraged in your faith. You can hear preaching that will inspire and challenge you. You can meet and talk to other people who will encourage you in your walk with God.

[Tweet “God knows that when we meet together we get inspired and challenged to live lives for Him. – @studentdevos”]

God is challenging us in this Bible verse to not stop meeting together as believers. God knows that when we meet together we get inspired and challenged to live lives for Him. So don’t give in to the things that would pull you away from going to church. Decide to make meeting with other believers a priority in your life!

No One Likes Eating by Themselves

Posted on October 24, 2016

Have you ever gone to meet people at a restaurant and you ended up getting there before anyone else arrived? Or even worse, have you ever had to eat somewhere completely by yourself? It sure isn’t fun.

There’s a story in the Bible where God invited tons of people to have supper with Him in Luke 14. This story shows us that God paid a huge price for us to be with Him and invite others to come too.

You might have been saved for a long time. You might now have christian friends and hang out at places where others share similar values as you. In one sense, that is great. It’s nice to have wholesome places where you can be yourself as a christian and not be nervous to talk about God. But in another sense you can become isolated from others who still need to know God. Its easy to get so comfortable hanging out with others who love God that you forget there are people all around your city who are hungry for Jesus, they just haven’t had a chance to hear about Him.

That’s what this story about the supper is all about. There was an invitation to come to the great supper but many who were invited made excuses to not come. Some of the excuses were buying land, having oxen, and getting married. Today’s excuses might be, I’ve got a new video game to play, or a new girlfriend to hang out with, or that I’m too busy learning lines for the school play. There is nothing wrong with any of those things, except when those things get in the way of doing what God asks.

You might feel like your friends that don’t know God could care less about Him. And while that might be true for some, most of your friends are hungry for God. They’re just hiding it underneath a lot of hurt. Your friends are hungry for God and if you asked them to go to church with you, they’d probably say yes.

To step out and ask a friend to go with you to church is not comfortable. However, it might be their chance to hear about Jesus for the first time. Your flesh (emotions and often how you feel) doesn’t want to step outside of your safety net of christian friends. But, if you are born again and know Jesus as Your Savior, you have another part of you (your Spirit). This new part of you does care about others who do not know God. It wants to be bold and often is nudging you on the inside to step out and do things to help others experience Gods love.

Make the decision to be open to be used by God. Invite people who do not know Jesus into your life. You might not know how God will do it, or you might not know what to say but the first step is simply being willing. Then the second step is to simply pray that God would help you step out. He might put a specific person on your heart. You might not think they are hungry by the way they act but God knows. If He put them on your heart, you know if you step out that something special will happen.

Right now if you are willing and ready to reach out to the unsaved hurting hungry people around you, pray this: “God, I’m thankful for the things You’ve done in my life. I know that You also love others around me that have never heard or experienced You like I have. God, show me who those are around me that are hungry for you and give me the courage to invite them into my life. Give me the courage to invite them to my church. God, I believe that you will use me. Amen.”

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6 Things To Add To Your New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on December 29, 2014

Its almost a new year! Time has really flown by. Since this is the time of year that everyone seems to think about starting over, or setting goals, let’s look at a few really great goals you can add to your list of New Years Resolutions.

Know God. This year, challenge yourself to make knowing God a priority. Really put some effort into knowing God. The best way to get to know God is by reading the Bible. Don’t make excuses like the Bible is outdated, boring or hard to read. There are tons of versions of the Bible that can make reading it easier. You can listen to several versions of the Bible online at bible.com. You can also find a great podcast or check out some of our devotions on reading the Bible. Don’t make excuses, spend time in the Bible by finding a way to read it that works for you.
“All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised him from death. ” – Phil 3:10 a (ERV)
Open up. Life is really busy. It can be easy to get caught up in your group of friends and what is going on in their lives that you forget to pay attention to those around you. Your school’s hallways are filled with people that need Christ. All around you, there are tons of opportunities to love others. All you have to do is be open to being used by God. Ask God to show you people around you that are hungry for God. Invite them into your life. Hear what they have to say, and see how God would have you minister to their needs. Its not hard, here’s a devo with some encouragement on how much God wants to use you.
Invite someone to church or youth group. One of the easiest ways to lead someone to Christ is to ask them to church or youth group. You might feel a little silly doing it, but challenge yourself to step out of your comfort zone and ask someone in your life to church with you. Believe God that their heart will be touched, and that they will come to know Christ as a result.
You never know what your invitation might mean to the person. A teenager I know asked one of her friends to a youth group event. Her friend came and asked Jesus into her heart that night. What this teenager didn’t know was that her friend had planned to commit suicide that night. That teen’s simple invitation to church literally saved her friend’s life. You don’t know what something as simple as asking someone to church might do for someone else. You might be the only chance your friends have of hearing the gospel. Find more devotions on sharing your faith.
Read. With all the history books you have to read for school, the idea of more reading can seem really lame. No matter how lame it sounds, challenge yourself to read some personal growth books this year. You could pick up a book on leadership, or how to make lasting friendships. It doesn’t really matter what the topic is about. Simply find a self-help topic that interests you and challenge yourself to grow as a person in the next year.
Grow. Its easy to get lazy in life. Most likely, you’ve gotten comfortable in your routine, in your friends and with your classes. When things are going good, its pretty easy to slip into lazy mode. However, challenge yourself to not just stay where you’re at right now. Challenge yourself to grow in the next year. Step out of your comfort zone and do something that you wouldn’t normally do.
You might decide to sign up for a missions trip to Brazil with your youth group. Maybe you decide to help clear out your neighbor’s garage. Or perhaps its talking to that guy at lunch that always sits by himself at the back table. Whatever it is, challenge yourself to grow this year. Don’t let the year slip away without doing something extraordinary.
Give. Don’t let this year be a year that you forget to give. Push past selfishness and give more this year. Choose to hold off buying that video game, and give a little extra to your friend’s missions trip.
Decide that on Sunday nights instead of hanging out with your friends to go visit your grandma who can’t get out and about anymore. Whatever makes sense to you, whether is giving time, money, or something else, choose to give more this year. No matter how much or how little you have, you can always find room to give something to someone else this year.
“Give to others, and you will receive. You will be given much. It will be poured into your hands—more than you can hold. You will be given so much that it will spill into your lap. The way you give to others is the way God will give to you.” – Luke 6:38 (ERV)

These are just a few suggestions on things to add to your new years goals. What are some other goals that you’ve set for yourself in the upcoming year?

What Your Headphones Can Teach You About Going To Church

Posted on December 27, 2013

Have you ever noticed how many different types of headphones are around? There’s the ear bud type and the over the ear kind. Then there’s choices of color, brand, quality and price. When it comes to headphones, as consumers we’re got tons of great options to choose from. In this devotion, we’re going to look at headphones and see what they can show us about going to church.

One important thing that headphones do is help you hear your music better. If I were to try to listen to my iPod without headphones, I wouldn’t have much luck. See without the headphones, I wouldn’t be able to hear anything. In the same way, the pastor of your local church helps you hear and understand the Bible better. A pastor can show you things that you might not have ever even thought about in the Bible. He or she can help you uncover and hear the word better.

Another thing headphones do is connect. Headphones have to be plugged into an iPod, phone, computer, or other device to be useful. Without being plugged in they don’t really do any good. That’s a lot like church. To be the most use out of going to church, you’ve got to get plugged in. You can do that by becoming a part of a Bible study, volunteering in the nursery, or helping out with an outreach ministry. Whatever you do, get involved. You’ll get the most out of your experience at church when you get involved in giving back and in relationships with others.

“…not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:25 (Message)

Going to church is an important part of your growth as a Christian. The local church provides you an opportunity to grow spiritually and provides a place for you to develop your gifts. Continue to plug in to your local church and watch how much you begin to grow!

3 Reasons Not To Go To Church

Posted on June 4, 2013

Why does everyone make a big deal about going to church? Whether you go to church or not doesn’t really matter does it? Plus, there’s lots of great preachers on TV and online, so you can learn about God that way, right?

Here’s three reasons why you shouldn’t go to church.

You’re okay living an average life for God – God built the church to challenge you to grow. Going to church puts you in contact with people who can point out weak spots in your life. They will mentor you and challenge you to grow. If you want to live an average boring life without being challenged to grow church isn’t for you.
You don’t like giving back to others – Church gives you a great opportunity to give to others. Whether you give money or your time, church is built to give you opportunities to give back to others. If you’re not into giving back, church is not for you.
You don’t like meeting new friends – Church gives you lots of opportunities to meet new people. You can find some awesome friends and build lasting relationships. Plus church usually offers fun hang out times which you can’t get anywhere else. If you don’t really like meeting new people church is probably not for you.

Going to church is actually very important to you growing spiritually. Church brings you into contact with people that can help challenge you, encourage you, and hold you accountable. Church is also a place where you can learn more about God and His word. Plus, the Bible talks about us getting together to worship God in this verse in Hebrews 10:25 – “not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on” (Message)

It might be easier to stay home or to not get involved in church, but church is really important. If you want to have a thriving relationship with God and meet some great like-minded friends along the way, church is for you!