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"The Blessings Of A Faithful Man"
"I put Hanani my brother, and Hananiah the commander of the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem, for he was a faithful man and feared God more than many" (Nehemiah 7:2). "A faithful man will abound with blessings" (Proverbs 28:20a).
Many of you heard a sermon on fathers on Father's Day yesterday. Often preachers tend to honor mothers on Mother's day
and challenge
fathers on Father's Day! I realize that was my pattern and a
characteristic I often stress in this challenge to a good father is
faithfulness.
The Bible lists many qualities of a good man but today let us consider just one; being faithful. I have only one uncle still living and I hope to visit Uncle Don and his wife next month as our family travels to the Midwest for a family reunion. I consider his faithfulness to his wife, children and church. He, like my dad, is multi-gifted in regard to fixing just about anything. I recall many years ago a visit with their pastor who commended Uncle Don and Aunt Mary in regard to their faithfulness and service to their church.
"Quiet faithfulness" is a phrase our pastor used a number of years ago to describe Eldon, a friend who had
departed this world after a long life. I like that phrase and can
consider many whom I would consider this way. It's the best kind of
faithfulness, not flaunted or promoted but just quietly demonstrated day
after day in the long course of life.
In studying for today's message I came across a description in the Bible I don't recall noticing before. Nehemiah describes an obscure man named Hananiah, who was the commander of the fortress, as "a faithful man and feared God more than many." In considering this text I observe that being a faithful man and having a fear of God are so inter-related. Perhaps the massive breakdown in faithfulness we see in our age is related to the loss of having a healthy, holy fear of God.
The truth of the second daily Scripture is often most evident in the
later years of life. "A
faithful man will abound with blessings." Faithfulness has its rewards, both in this
life and the one to come. If you have salvation you are actually
abounding in blessings now but you can become discouraged with present
trials. God's Word is ever true. Perhaps you need to
consider someone you know who has served God faithfully for many years
and observe how they abound with blessings. But just remember the
greatest blessings are yet to come!
I am sure you know some "quietly faithful" people. I've met many
in my life and continue to meet them. The last several years I have
been blessed by Clarence and Alverta, an elderly couple who just
celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary. For many years Clarence was a
master carpenter who built many homes here in the Lancaster area.
I visited with them yesterday, joining them as they ate their lunch. Both in their nineties now, Clarence has
a bit of a time seeing and hearing but is still sharp and Alverta is
amazingly witty.
Character qualities like faithfulness, steadfastness, and consistency might sound boring to some today, but they still matter to God. "A faithful man shall abound with blessings", and he does; both in this life and the life to come. Let us aspire to hear these wonderful words from the supremely Faithful One, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
may my life be marked by faithfulness and
integrity. I know that these character traits are not developed over a
short period of time but over the duration of my life, most especially
during the challenging times. Obedience does bring blessing and it does
bring
eternal reward. Help me not to become weary in doing good, for at the
proper time that You have ordained, I will reap a harvest if I do not
give up. Amen.
Here's another photo of the field work we saw on Saturday. It looked like broccoli.
Yesterday we visited with Jesse and Wilma Dourte along with their daughter Colleen. Jesse has his ninetieth birthday this Tuesday and on Wednesday evening will be leading the Bible study in our church.
Rummaging through old photos Ester found this Father's Day photo from about fifteen years ago. Ester had given me a Veggie tale tie and Brooksyne made a cake with a tie.
Now some 15 years later we decided to show a real life age progression. However it is a fresh cake! Ester still insists that I wear the veggie tale tie on Father's Day, which always gets quite a few comments, especially by children!
Here's a closeup of the cake Brooksyne made. You can't do any better than having an edible tie made of butter-glazed pecans!
Today's Suggested
Music
and Supplemental Resources
"When It's All Been Said And Done" Video Robin Mark
"Find Us Faithful" Video Steve Green
"Faithful Men" Video Twila Paris
"Jesus, Lover Of My Soul" Video A beautiful song reminding us that our life's journey here below is all about Jesus, not ourselves. "It's for Your glory and Your fame. It's not about me as if You should do things my way. You alone are God and I surrender to Your ways."
To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)
Are our daily
encouragement messages a blessing to you? We ask
you to consider making a donation to Daily
Encouragement Net so that we can continue to
prepare and provide this daily resource
which is accessed by believers and seekers all
over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies
solely on the generosity and financial support
of its readers and podcast listeners. See here
for more information on supporting this
ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.
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.
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!
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
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 please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2013 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
<Previous Message Next Message>
Monday, June 17, 2013
Saturday afternoon we passed a farm near our home and saw an Amish family working together in the fields.
Listen to this message on your
audio
player.
Saturday afternoon we passed a farm near our home and saw an Amish family working together in the fields.
Listen to this message on your
audio
player.
"The Blessings Of A Faithful Man"
"I put Hanani my brother, and Hananiah the commander of the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem, for he was a faithful man and feared God more than many" (Nehemiah 7:2). "A faithful man will abound with blessings" (Proverbs 28:20a).
Many of you heard a sermon on fathers on Father's Day yesterday. Often preachers tend to honor mothers on Mother's day
and challenge
fathers on Father's Day! I realize that was my pattern and a
characteristic I often stress in this challenge to a good father is
faithfulness.The Bible lists many qualities of a good man but today let us consider just one; being faithful. I have only one uncle still living and I hope to visit Uncle Don and his wife next month as our family travels to the Midwest for a family reunion. I consider his faithfulness to his wife, children and church. He, like my dad, is multi-gifted in regard to fixing just about anything. I recall many years ago a visit with their pastor who commended Uncle Don and Aunt Mary in regard to their faithfulness and service to their church.
"Quiet faithfulness" is a phrase our pastor used a number of years ago to describe Eldon, a friend who had
departed this world after a long life. I like that phrase and can
consider many whom I would consider this way. It's the best kind of
faithfulness, not flaunted or promoted but just quietly demonstrated day
after day in the long course of life.In studying for today's message I came across a description in the Bible I don't recall noticing before. Nehemiah describes an obscure man named Hananiah, who was the commander of the fortress, as "a faithful man and feared God more than many." In considering this text I observe that being a faithful man and having a fear of God are so inter-related. Perhaps the massive breakdown in faithfulness we see in our age is related to the loss of having a healthy, holy fear of God.
The truth of the second daily Scripture is often most evident in the
later years of life. "A
faithful man will abound with blessings." Faithfulness has its rewards, both in this
life and the one to come. If you have salvation you are actually
abounding in blessings now but you can become discouraged with present
trials. God's Word is ever true. Perhaps you need to
consider someone you know who has served God faithfully for many years
and observe how they abound with blessings. But just remember the
greatest blessings are yet to come!
I am sure you know some "quietly faithful" people. I've met many
in my life and continue to meet them. The last several years I have
been blessed by Clarence and Alverta, an elderly couple who just
celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary. For many years Clarence was a
master carpenter who built many homes here in the Lancaster area.
I visited with them yesterday, joining them as they ate their lunch. Both in their nineties now, Clarence has
a bit of a time seeing and hearing but is still sharp and Alverta is
amazingly witty.Character qualities like faithfulness, steadfastness, and consistency might sound boring to some today, but they still matter to God. "A faithful man shall abound with blessings", and he does; both in this life and the life to come. Let us aspire to hear these wonderful words from the supremely Faithful One, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father,
may my life be marked by faithfulness and
integrity. I know that these character traits are not developed over a
short period of time but over the duration of my life, most especially
during the challenging times. Obedience does bring blessing and it does
bring
eternal reward. Help me not to become weary in doing good, for at the
proper time that You have ordained, I will reap a harvest if I do not
give up. Amen.Here's another photo of the field work we saw on Saturday. It looked like broccoli.
Yesterday we visited with Jesse and Wilma Dourte along with their daughter Colleen. Jesse has his ninetieth birthday this Tuesday and on Wednesday evening will be leading the Bible study in our church.
Rummaging through old photos Ester found this Father's Day photo from about fifteen years ago. Ester had given me a Veggie tale tie and Brooksyne made a cake with a tie.
Now some 15 years later we decided to show a real life age progression. However it is a fresh cake! Ester still insists that I wear the veggie tale tie on Father's Day, which always gets quite a few comments, especially by children!
Here's a closeup of the cake Brooksyne made. You can't do any better than having an edible tie made of butter-glazed pecans!
"When It's All Been Said And Done" Video Robin Mark
"Find Us Faithful" Video Steve Green
"Faithful Men" Video Twila Paris
"Jesus, Lover Of My Soul" Video A beautiful song reminding us that our life's journey here below is all about Jesus, not ourselves. "It's for Your glory and Your fame. It's not about me as if You should do things my way. You alone are God and I surrender to Your ways."
Send a message to Stephen
& Brooksyne
To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)
Are our daily
encouragement messages a blessing to you? We ask
you to consider making a donation to Daily
Encouragement Net so that we can continue to
prepare and provide this daily resource
which is accessed by believers and seekers all
over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies
solely on the generosity and financial support
of its readers and podcast listeners. See here
for more information on supporting this
ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.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.
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!
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
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 please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2013 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA