Today's Passage: 1 Corinthians 16

I love reading Paul's words here in this last chapter and seeing how much of an encourager he had become.  Also I love what he had to say about the giving of money to ministry.  Paul doesn't instruct the Corinthians to "tithe" instead he says be responsible with your finances and put some money away so that when a need arises the church won't have to take up a collection.  This implies that it wasn't just the church leaders "paying the bills" the members of the church were giving freely as the church needed. What an awesome picture and convicting a little about how I think about giving to the church.

My favorite line in this chapter is "Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love." What a straight forward and honest charge to this church.  I think this is something we all need to hear on a regular basis.

So, my brothers and sisters in Christ be on your guard against this world; stand firm in your faith that God is bigger than anything we are facing; be courageous when facing trials; be strong in your obedience to God's commands and do EVERYTHING in love!