Thurs., 4/5/18 Devotion (1 Thess. 2:2b)

Today's encouragement comes from 1 Thessalonians 2:2b, where we read these words:

" . . . we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much conflict."

Sometimes we are able to do the greatest things, when we are under the most intense pressure. Here, Paul had been under enormous stress, but he was still able to preach the gospel to the Thessalonians—and to do it "boldly" "in [his] God." If we think we have to wait for everything in our lives to "calm down" before we can do anything of value for the ministry of the church—then we will never act at all.

Indeed, conflict or hardship (pressure) either totally stymies our effectiveness, or it motivates us on in more fruitfulness in Jesus. Let all the faithful church today recognize that life is not “easy”—but let us not use this as an excuse to rob ourselves, our Savior, our church, and our world of the benefits God may bring through us.

[Puritan quote of the day: "God cannot be pacified by any other means than by the infinite price of the death and blood of His own Son, one drop of which is more precious than all the creatures of heaven and earth.” —Jeremiah Bur-roughs, in, "Gospel Remission"]