Email from Abiding Place Daily Bread – July 25, 2025 (The Sixth Day – Genesis 1:24-31) 2 Timothy 2:4 – No one serving as a soldier entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please Him who enlisted him to be a soldier. The first thing everyone should be aware of is how God has commissioned all of us to serve in His army. However, if we are going to please Him, then we must be willing to be as dedicated as a soldier is to the battle, and as committed as an athlete to his training. The Kingdom of God is supposed to be first in our lives – not our jobs. If we are not watchful, our jobs can easily consume us and we will lose track of our purpose. We will become restricted and controlled, and no longer free to be who we are called to be in Christ Jesus. Our ministries and commitments to our families and to the local church will end up taking a back seat to our dedication and commitment to our jobs. The people around us will no longer be the precious souls for whom Christ died, but rather the means to our success or the threat of our failure. Being tangled up in the cares of this world chokes the Word of God so we no longer live by the Word, but instead by our own desires (Matthew 13:22). The cares of riches and the pleasures of this life ruin us and keep us from bringing forth the perfect fruit God desires to display through us (Luke 8:14, 21:34). In this deceitful trap, we slip away from making God the sole object of our trust, and begin to trust in ourselves. Suddenly, the peace is gone and our lives are consumed with stress and worry (Philippians 4:6; Jeremiah 17:5-8). Yet, at the same time, God also demands we be diligent in business (Romans 12:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:11; 1 Corinthians 4:12; Proverbs 22:29; Deuteronomy 2:7; 28:12). The difference between being diligent in business and entangled in business is in the way we trust in God. We are no more responsible for our success than we are for a miracle. We do all God has commanded us to do, and look to Him to bring forth the promised blessing. Much like the farmer, we are to till the ground and sow the seed, but God works the miracle and brings forth the harvest. There are some who talk of balance – but more specifically we must have boundaries. Everyday, we must know all we do, in word and in deed, we do in the Name of the Lord Jesus and for the purposes of the Kingdom of God (Colossians 3:17). Blessings, Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
Daily Bread 7/25/2025
