The online
Bible teaching ministry of Stephen
& Brooksyne Weber
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Home Archives About Us Free email subscription Listen to these messages Daily Encouragement on Facebook Twitter Wordpress LinkedIn <Previous Message Next Message> Wednesday, June 20, 2018 "Quietly Faithful" Message summary: The Bible lists many qualities of a good person but today let us consider just one; being "quietly faithful". Listen to our message on your audio player. "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). Theodore Roosevelt is attributed with a quote we have seen used effectively as a thought-provoking spiritual message on a church sign: "It is better to be faithful than famous". Although there are some famous people who are also faithful many who are recognized as "famous" are certainly not faithful! Merely consider so many of the famous names in sports, entertainment and politics. The desire for fame drives many to seek outrageous behavior to get attention such as the goal of creating something "viral". Others use evil means such as a mass murderer several years ago who left a suicide note which stated, "Now I'll be famous." * Eldon Lehman is a friend who departed this world after a long, fruitful life as a follower of Jesus Christ. That's the best kind of faithfulness, not flaunted or promoted, but quietly demonstrated day after day, month after month, year after year in the long course of life. In our first daily text Nehemiah refers to an obscure man named Hananiah, who was the commander of the fortress. His sole Biblical distinctive is that he was "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. We believe the massive breakdown in faithfulness we see in our own age is related to the loss of having a healthy, holy fear of God. In previous generations families commonly imprinted portions of Scripture as an epitaph on tombstones and it's still practiced by some today. On my parent's tombstone we have, "For Me To Live Is Christ, To Die Is Gain". A phrase from today's verse has been used on many tombstones, "He was a faithful man and feared God more than many". The above pictured epitaph is on the tombstone of Deacon Samuel Peck in Greenwich, Connecticut who died in 1793. Such an epitaph makes us want to hear his story. The road to being faithful is a long steady slog, the accumulation of many small decisions made throughout life. You decide each day that you will live faithfully but the characteristic of being faithful takes time. Good intentions and reality too often do not present the same outcome. Character qualities like faithfulness, steadfastness, and consistency might sound boring to many 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. Our neighbors harvesting their heirloom rhubarb on Kraybill Church Road, family project. (Click to enlarge) This looks like an aerial view of a local house, but it's actually a display at a nursery featuring a miniature house with flowers and succulents. Today's
Suggested Music and
Supplemental Resources
"Legacy Of Love" Video David Phelps * Omaha Gunman's Note: "Now I'll Be Famous" 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.) 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. We do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact. 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 make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity." © Copyright 2018 Stephen C. & Brooksyne Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA |