The
online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily
Encouragement Net is encouraging
followers of Jesus Christ with hope and encouragement from the Bible!
Free email subscription: Join thousands
of readers all over the world who
receive the free daily email.
Welcome to Daily
Encouragement Net!
Stephen
and
Brooksyne Weber
"We
want to encourage
you daily in your walk with Christ!"
Each
weekday this
website is updated with an encouraging new message
prepared by Stephen and Brooksyne.
Will you please
help us continue this free
daily encouragement ministry that is impacting thousands all over the
world?
Donations
are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy
endorsing ministry. Click
here for details.
Sign
up for a free
email subscription to this daily
message. You will
receive a
confirmation email to the address you subscribed to. Merely follow the
simple instructions in this email
(essentially just
reply to it) and you will be added to the mailing list immediately and
will receive the next message. We hope the messages will be a
blessing!
Privacy
Statement:
"Your e-mail address is held in strict confidence in a
password-protected mail list and is not used for any other purpose but
this daily encouragement. You may easily unsubscribe at any
time." Daily
prayers:
A selection of prayers written by Brooksyne used in these
messages. Listen
to WDAC "Music for the Heart"
(Streaming HD
radio from our local Christian station)
Agora:
Articles concerning ministry at work. Resources
for Ministers:
Helps and ideas for pastors and others in
ministry.
Hymn
Story Net: Stories and
backgrounds behind the great
hymns. Scripture Memory Songs: A
selection of Scripture verses we
recorded in our home with
some friends. The words are
set to familar music
as an aid to memorization in a discipleship training class. Music:
Songs recorded in my home studio.
Perspectives:
Articles on various contemporary issues.
"A
Little Foolishness" I
invite daily encouragement readers to visit our
blog which is a collection of humorous and satirical
stories
drawn
mostly from our years of ministry, as well as my sometimes fertile
imagination. We also welcome submissions from readers. Humor:
Have a laugh based on real experiences we have had as well as stories
submitted
by readers.
These
are a
selection of books that Brooksyne and I have read that have impacted
our walk with the
Lord and we especially recommend to others!
Permissions:
Please
feel free
to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily
Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that
you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost
of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect
or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact, copyright and
subscription information intact. Ideas
for
spreading this ministry.
Personal
Mission Statement
"I
am created by God to bring
Him glory. Through God’s Son, Jesus Christ, I have been
redeemed and I make it my life’s goal to honor God through my
faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for
eternity."
Daily
Encouragement Net
is an affiliate of
Daily
Encouragement Net
495
Kraybill
Church Road
Mount
Joy, PA
17552 USA Contact
Us
This is a view of the Espenshade farm at
the end of our road following the storm this last weekend. I have photos of
this same scene in the spring, summer and autumn.
"Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches" (2 Corinthians 11:28).
We
had a major snow storm of some 20 inches this last weekend and tonight
we are supposed to get another one. We enjoy the snow and it sure is
beautiful as we look outside. It's especially beautiful now that the
clouds are lifted and the sun is making the white snow appear dazzling.
However
I do have a concern. Since the temps have remained low since the last
storm the snow has hardly melted at all. We thus have a lot of heavy
snow on our roof. (I know it's heavy because I've been reaching up over
the porch roof with a long-handled tool and scraping it off!). The next
storm could be as much as 12 inches so that will be a lot more snow
stacked on the roof of our home.
There are two ways weight on
the roof is measured. Dead load refers to the weight of the roofing
materials and remains constant. Live load varies and includes the
weight of the snow and/or ice build-up. I am of course concerned
with the live load aspect of all this snow!
I believe there is a
parallel in life. There are the daily ongoing burdens and cares we all
deal with. These remain somewhat constant and are similar among
individuals, regardless of who we are or where we live. Then
there are the acute, short-term trials that come and go that are very
specific to each of us. These are like the "live load" on a roof.
Today's verse has often intrigued me, especially as a pastor. "Apart from such external things"
points back to the context referring to Paul's many physical sufferings
for Christ. In this passage he is reluctantly, due to criticism,
asserting his many trials as an apostle. He calls these "external things".
But then he writes "of the daily pressure on me".
After writing very specifically about his sufferings for Christ he
includes the inward pressure of bearing the burden for the churches he
had served and for specific individuals in them. A caring pastor
always has some element of the work of God on his heart and in his
mind. Notice Paul writes that he had "concern for all the churches".
He is not referring to one church but to several he had started and
overseen. I understand that since Brooksyne and I continue to be
interested in people from our former congregations. We continue
to pray for them regularly and for their specific needs when we're made
aware of them.
Surely Paul might have
had in mind an individual struggling through an illness such as
Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-30). He clearly knew and loved
people as individuals.
Paul
might have been distressed by doctrinal error that is always at the
door which divides a church and scatters the flock such as that which
hit the churches of Galatia (Galatians 1:6ff).
Possibly Paul had in mind division in the church (1 Corinthians 1:10ff).
Perhaps it was some argumentative sisters such as Euodia and Syntyche (Philippians 4:2).
Or it might have been a backslidden fellow-worker such as Demas or a destructive Alexander (2 Timothy 4:10 & 14).
An
expression used in the news to describe an unsettled matter or
constantly changing details in a news story is referred to as "a moving
story". Certainly you can relate to the physical and emotional struggle
one feels when concerned about a circumstance that changes from day to
day regarding a matter, other people, or ourselves. Our Scripture
reference specifically pertains to the load Paul carried as he was "concerned for all the churches".
Some
of the recipients of this devotional are in pastoral ministry.
I'm confident that you will readily acknowledge their need for ongoing
prayer. Pastoral ministry is spiritually rewarding but can be
emotionally draining in the ongoing "moving story" of the congregation
in addition to one's own family needs. Let us pray for our
pastor(s) and fellow workers in Christ today. Perhaps you could
call and offer to pray. For some it is more convenient to email a
note of encouragement, or a personalized prayer (perhaps a text message
if you and your pastor do that sort of thing). Or how about an
old-fashioned and yet very viable, up to date method of correspondence:
send a letter of encouragement. It will be like a treasure amidst the
stack of bills and junk mail. Why not be a burden bearer and help
carry the load of those who labor for your soul today!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily prayer:Father,
since the church is a living organism it brings about many changes,
both positive and negative, from day to day, year to year. The
account of the Israelites proves there's a continual moving story as
they respond, often unfavorably, to the various challenging
circumstances in their wanderings in the desert and later in
Canaan. We think of the leaders, some very strong in their faith,
and others who weakened during times of temptation and testing.
Father God, thank you raising up the Aarons and Hurs in our churches
who hold up the feeble arms of our pastors during times of spiritual
battle. Help us to walk together heart to heart and hand in
hand. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
FREE
EMAIL SUBSCRIPTION: Join
thousands of readers from all
over the
world who
receive the free daily email version of this message! To receive
these
daily messages merely use our online form. You will receive a
confirmation email to the address you subscribed to.
Merely follow the simple instructions in this email
(essentially just
reply to it) and you will be added to the mailing list immediately and
will receive the next message. We hope the messages will be a
blessing!
Text only
version for printing: To make a text only version for
printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials) 1)
Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as
wordpad, textpad, etc.) You
can also use a program like Word and select paste text only. 2)
Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to
print. 3)
Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a
brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just
ignore.) 4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or
decrease size, etc.) 5) Print! Privacy
Statement: "Your
e-mail address is held in a password-protected mail list and is not
used for any other purpose but this daily encouragement. You
may
easily unsubscribe at any time." If you are having trouble getting
subscribed or you are subscribed but are not getting the encouragement
in your email see: Subscription
information
"Living
securely today anchored
in
God's solid foundation"
Text
only
