Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 9 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 9 May2008

Building the right character for courtship. Today’s word of encouragement is about waiting, patience, and don’t rush. Waiting/patience. In my opinion the greatest challenge in waiting and being patient is obedience. People around us or our friends may already be married and have children. Here we are still single. I pray that we would faithfully wait on God. If we take things into our own hands, we will REWRITE our own destiny, and the plans that God had for us no longer becomes a reality. Don’t rush. If age, pressure, and loneliness are reasons why we want to get into a relationship so that we can get married, in my opinion, this relationship will fail. Secondly, if we rush into courtship, there is a lack of wisdom. Some of us might say, “If you never try then you will never know.” How about this statement, “I don’t need to try, I wait on God.” Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. 25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 7 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 7 May2008

Building the right character for courtship. Today’s word of encouragement emphasizes the importance of hearing God’s voice clearly before we think about courtship, while we are in courtship, and even through the final outcome of the courtship. Why? Because when we are in “La La Land”, physical attraction far outweighs, and overpowers God’s voice. Today, examine your life. Without making any excuse, ask yourself, “Am I listening to God’s voice through every step?” If there is peace in your heart, you know the answer. And if you don’t have peace, you know the answer as well. God’s commands are simple: 1) go, get up and walk. 2) stop, stop sinning, stop doing what is not right. 3) what you doing is right on, keep doing it. 4) What you are doing is not part of My plans so stop. (This list does not define God’s commands) THE CHOICES YOU MAKE TODAY AFFECT TOMORROW—SO LISTENING TO GOD IS VITAL It is so easy to tell when a marriage is purposed by God and when it isn’t. Just look at how they handle crisis, pain, suffering, and how they love each other and you would know. This same picture can be seen through courtship. If God has intended you to be with that person, nothing can fail. But if it is forced upon by your own desire and not God’s, watch and see everything will fail. Don’t get mad at God if it fails, because He loves us, and wants us be in the center of His will. Acts 5:38-39 For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 6 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 6 May2008

Building the right character for courtship. Today’s word of encouragement is: Knowing your role. The way that God designed men and women was SPECIFIC, and clearly had a purpose. However, today these roles have been distorted. Because men in general have taken a back seat, unwilling to lead, and unwilling to take responsibility. God made men to lead their homes, to take responsibility and God made women to support to help men. Please do not misinterpret what I mean. God has designed all of us uniquely whether we are male or female. And women should lead if God has called them to do so, but we cannot deny the fact that God made a specific role for women Genesis 2:18 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." If we have the wrong perspective and thinking of our role as men and women of God, walking into courtship and marriage is going to be very difficult, because God’s role for men and women is very clear since the beginning. Today, if you are thinking about getting into a relationship with someone, I hope that you would take time to examine your life. I hope that you would find out from God if you need to change your character, I pray and hope that you would do this before you walk into any relationship otherwise there is going to be a lot of strain and frustration. Genesis 3:8-9 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" Though it was Eve who ate the fruit first, giving it to Adam, God called for Adam. Responsibility, leading, is key and all Adam did was make an excuse for his sins. I hope that this word would be a clear reminder of how vital and important it is to have the right role as men and women of God. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 5 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 5 May2008

2 Corinthians 6:18 I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. Courtship done right! God has given us the entire Bible and it has to be our fundamental guide as we approach courtship. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect you to be a hyper spiritual “freak”, but simply—do it right! As I begin my series on Courtship done right, my focus is really on building the right character for courtship. God has uniquely designed man and woman. Today in this day and age, these roles have been altered, changed, because of culture. I hope that we would turn to the bible to restore who we were made to be, in God’s plan. Today, we begin this series with this simple promise from God. “God will be our Father and we will be His sons and daughters”. Let us build this foundation first and foremost, before we ever think about courtship. We have to build our relationship with God, because if God is not in charge of your life, trust me—everything that WE have planned, everything that WE want, WE desire, WILL fail. (Is God in control or you?) I cannot say this point enough, how much time we spend talking to God, MATTERS!!! And matters most! © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 4 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 4 May2008

Today I end my series on The power of God centered marriages, with this one final thought: Find a common passion that you and your spouse enjoy doing together. This common passion has to be more than just an activity. It is something that God has planted in both your hearts. For those of you who already know what calling you both share, great! Don’t forget that! For those of us who don’t know what this common calling that God has given to your marriage is, be excited, for God is going to reveal it to you. Ecclesiastes 4:9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: 10 If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! 11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? God has a great plan for your marriage, and today I pray that we would be excited about the unique plan He has for our marriages, and what God is going to do through our lives to make an impact for His kingdom. Let us seek God to open our hearts today. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 3 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 3 May2008

The power of God centered marriages, with this one final thought. Today’s word of encouragement is: Love. 1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. I pray today that your love for your wife/husband has not faded away. My prayer is that we could be married for ten years, 15 years, 20, 30, 40, 60…and our love for our wife/husband has never grown weaker, ONLY STRONGER. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 are verses that we need to pray over our marriages. If we lack at all in any of these areas, then we really need to seek God to teach us how to be: Patience, kind. If you notice that you lack in these areas: envy or boasting, pride, or rudeness, ask God how to remove them. Love, is never self-seeking, and love is not easily angered. It keeps no records of wrongs. (Do you keep tabs on all the wrong things your husband/wife has done—that is not love). Finally love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. Today, I hope we would be encouraged to spend time with our wife/husband and pray these verses over our marriage. Watch and see God transform our marriages. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 2 May2008

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 2 May2008

The power of God centered marriages. Today’s word of encouragement is: Faith. Faith is one of the most important foundations in a healthy marriage. To say that faith is of little or no consequence, it’d be foolish. Most marriages end up broken because of unfaithfulness. In order to build faith in our marriage, we must first trust God. If we can’t even trust God, then most likely we won’t be able to understand what faith is. Trusting in God, gives us security and most of all faith to know that God is in control. He is in control of our present situation; he is in control of our future, and most of all our marriage. If we don’t even have faith in God for our marriage, we are trusting in our own hands. Faith is crucial through the ups the downs, the valleys, the lows, the highs, and the pain. Today, I pray and hope that your faith is big to believe big things for your marriage. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. © Apr 2008 Shaun Lee. www.everynation.org.sg archive: www.shauntzen.blogspot.com