Onwards! Unswerving

Hi, and thanks for joining us for another daily encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Today's reading was written by Monica LaRose, and she titled it Onwards. In the poem Rest, the poet gently challenges our tendency to separate leisure time from work, asking, Is not true leisure one with true toil? If you want to experience true leisure instead of trying to avoid life's duties, the author urges, still do thy best, use it, not waste it. Else tis not rest. Wouldst behold beauty near thee?

All round? Only hath duty, such a sight found. The poet concludes that true rest and joy are both found through love and service, an idea that brings to mind Paul's encouragement to the Thessalonians. After describing his calling to encourage believers to live lives worthy of God, the apostle gives more specifics. And the picture he paints of such a life is one of quiet integrity, love, and service. Paul prays that God would make their love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else. And he urges believers in Jesus to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and work with your hands. It's that kind of life, quietly loving and serving in whatever ways God has enabled us, that reveals to others the beauty of a life of faith. Or, as the writer puts it, true joy is loving and serving, the highest and best tis onwards unswerving.

And that is true rest. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from 1 Thessalonians, chapter 3, verses 11 through 13, and chapter 4, verses 9 through 12. Now may our God and Father Himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all His holy ones. And now reading from chapter 4, verses 9 through 12. Now about your love for one another, we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.

And in fact, you do love all of God's family through Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life. You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. Let's pray. Loving God, thank you that we don't need to avoid the duties and rhymes of daily life to experience your beauty. Help us to know the joy of a quiet life lived with you. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today. My name is Alisha Reisinger, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.