Category: Sodwana News

Prepare for Battle . . . on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it—Matthew 16:18 We’re designed for battle by our Father God; we’re led into battle by our King, Jesus Christ; we’re aided in battle by God the Holy Spirit. These battles are waged “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). The places where we meet our enemies have names like “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, Source: South African LINKPrepare for Battle

Now that you’ve cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it.  Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God’s living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That’s why the prophet said, The old life is a grass life, its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers; Grass dries up, flowers droop, God’s Word goes on and on forever. This is the Word that conceived the new life in you. 1 Peter 1:24-25 MSG Source: South African LINKYour new life is not like your old life.

What can mere mortals do?—Psalm 56:4 Our King, Jesus Christ, calls us to a new kind of life, his kind of life. “Follow me” is quoted more than fifteen times in the Gospels. Following him, however, goes against prevailing culture—for which safety and security are utmost priorities. The kind of life to which Jesus calls us is not safe, nor secure. Here’s a report from a man, the Apostle Paul, who lived it: “Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three Source: South African LINKDanger is Your Business

Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts. Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip. Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; Proverbs 4:23 MSG Source: South African LINKLeave evil in the dust…

GOD loves all who hate evil, And those who love him he keeps safe, Snatches them from the grip of the wicked. Psalm 97:10 MSG Source: South African LINKGOD loves all who hate evil

. . . for I am fearfully and wonderfully made—Psalm 139:14 Our physical frames matter. People see God in and through them. We have spiritual natures, yes, but our physical frames give our spiritual selves home. They also give home to God the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). From an eternal perspective, they’re temporary. But our actions here and now affect our eternities—and we act, here and now, through our physical frames. Spiritual discipline matters more, but physical discipline and physical condition still matter (1 Timothy 4:7-8). The prevailing culture of this world tells us men our jobs should be Source: South African LINKReal Men Get Sleep