get over yourself, per Paul

Tonight is the last night of our Living for God in an Ungodly Culture small group study and as I'm sitting here reading through 1 Corinthians 16 once more, the book asks me to read a couple verses back in chapter 10. I'm stunned, as I did read chapter 10 before but I don't remember reading this ...

"Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence. No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it." - 1 Corinthians 10:12-13, The Message, Paul's letter to the church in Corinth

It always amazes me how the Bible can be read time and again but always offers a new message. Cultivate God-confidence. How did I miss that before? What a solid smack in the forehead! And the affirmation that certainly the trials any of us face have been faced by countless others ... wow.

I've heard it said many times, "If He leads you to it, He'll lead you through it." I don't know if that was a hand-me-down paraphrase of these verses, but what a revelation that God does actually say that to us through His Word.

More so today than ever, I believe the Bible is a living, breathing document that never grows old. It always illuminates something new and is just as applicable today as it was in its first days. Crack it open sometime and be stunned as God speaks to you.

Be Blessed,