Living Today
Articles from Christian teachers and leaders. Designed to help you as you follow Jesus here in Solomon Islands
Where Are Today’s Disciples?
By Tony Davenport Just days after claiming millions of uncommitted Christians are causing a “catastrophic decline in a Biblical worldview” veteran Christian researcher George Barna says that’s also led to a critical shortage of disciples. In expanding on the theme of...
Accelerating Global Bible Translations
It’s estimated that around half of the 7,400 known languages in the world, have been translated into Scriptures. Six billion people can access a full Bible in one of 736 languages. Another 824 million have access to a New Testament in one of 1658 other...
Accelerating Global Bible Translations
It’s estimated that around half of the 7,400 known languages in the world, have been translated into Scriptures. Six billion people can access a full Bible in one of 736 languages. Another 824 million have access to a New Testament in one of 1658 other languages. Half a billion more can read some Scriptures in another 1264 languages. That covers more than 7.4 billion people, even though the planet’s population now tops eight billion. (There is a lag in matching languages with...
4 Ways to Love Better
I was recently talking with someone about some relationship struggles they were experiencing. The need for patience was what we ended up with as a critical component to loving better. It’s very interesting, that in the love chapter in 1 Corinthians, it starts with “Love is patient…”. Love in our relationships (spouse, friends, family etc), is more than just the thought. God wants us to love, not just in word, but also in deed! The good part is that God will help us love. Here are 4 habits...
Seeing God’s Calling in our work
Here is a testimony from Lepani about seeing God's calling in his work and how God opened the right doors for him to be connected with a local Church in the Solomon Islands. Greetings in Jesus' Name from the Hapi (Happy) Isles, Solomon Islands. It is with great pleasure that I have been asked by National Leader for Christians for Israel Australia, Ian Worby to write this article. As a former National Leader for Christian For Israel Fiji, I have now been here in the Solomon Islands for the last...
Reflecting on God’s goodness
Here is a testimony from Lepani reflecting on God's goodness and faithfulness in the past... With Pentecost Sunday 2023 around the corner to be celebrated on 28 May, 2023, I wish to reflect on an event that took place on Pentecost Sunday here in the Solomon Islands two years ago. Two years ago, combined youths from inter-denominations marched through the capital city of Solomon Islands, Honiara right to the Parliament House, interceding on behalf of the nation of Solomon Islands and also for...
The Cross at Easter
The cross is an important symbol during Easter, reminding us of the incredible sacrifice Jesus made. Despite all of our struggles and pain, the cross reminds us we are not alone in this world. We can find strength and comfort knowing that Jesus has already saved us from our sins. It’s this hope for redemption through Christ’s death on the cross that makes Easter such an integral part of Christian tradition. Stu Millar from Train to Proclaim recently shared on Vision Chrisitan Media his...
When All Seems Lost
Now what? That’s something that all of us have said to ourselves at one time or another. In his new message, ‘When All Seems Lost’, Pastor Jeff Vines covers the topics of marriage and keeping relationships strong. Jeff offers encouragement for those of us who are struggling with chaos and feeling lost. God does not give His law arbitrarily. When God tells us He wants us to live in certain parameters and by certain precepts, He does it because He loves us. If He’s the creator and sustainer of...
Compassion and Action
The crewmembers on board Logos Hope all left their homes at one point to come on board the ship to live and work together with others from around the world. They exchanged their familiar environments for a very unique accommodation – a ship – which sooner or later they also call their home for a specific amount of time. They all do know though, that there are many people in the world, who are longing for a place to stay in which they can experience peace and safety. The refugees who leave...
Dad’s Toolkit
It’s a fantastic opportunity to reflect on the value of family, and in particular the role of dads. What are your strengths as a parent? Are there some areas you could grow in? How do you begin your journey of becoming the parent God has called you to be? Brett and Kate Ryan from Focus on the Family, have created a ‘Dad’s Toolkit’ that’s full of ideas on how dad’s can improve themselves. It contains things like conversation starters with your kids, and questions we can ask our dads. Healthy...
Truth, Lies and Financial Freedom
Many Christians divide their lives into categories. Some things they want Jesus to be a part of, but not others. Because we compartmentalise our Christian lives, according to Pastor Jeff Vines, we instantly assume that everything we don’t devote to God is neutral. God will still love us, but any area that we withhold from Him and think we can handle on our own is a false assumption. C.S. Lewis said, ‘There is no neutral ground in the universe.’ Every square inch, every split second is claimed...
God is always wanting to use us
Recently, I was clicking through folders and folders of early photos of our kids. From baby age to the present, I just got lost in it for hours. How good it was to recount the memories, the places we had visited and I just couldn’t hold back giving God the glory for the good things He had done in our family. Towards the end, a certain photo stopped me in my tracks. You see, over 2yrs ago, our eldest daughter moved to Perth to follow God’s plan for her life. While Cindy and I daily still miss...
Be disciplined
‘Do not neglect the gift that is in you.’ 1 Timothy 4:14 NKJV
The only way to keep improving is to keep practising. If you want to grow in a particular area, figure out what it will really take, including the price, and then determine to pay it. David didn’t suddenly discover his talent for playing the harp when he arrived at King Saul’s palace. He developed it through years of practice on lonely hillsides while tending his father’s sheep.
Paul instructed Timothy: ‘Till I come, give attention to reading… Do not neglect the gift that is in you… Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.’ (1 Timothy 4:13–15 NKJV) When you’re through growing—you’re through. Progress, success, and growth don’t happen by absorbing someone else’s talent, they demand discipline.
There is no easy way to become a disciplined person. The reason last year’s winner was this year’s runner-up is because one was willing to put in extra effort when it came to practice and discipline. Anyone who does what he or she must do only when they’re in the mood or when it’s convenient will get left behind. Improvement comes through discipline. A disciplined person doesn’t make excuses or accept excuses; they eliminate excuses. As François de La Rochefoucauld said, ‘Almost all our faults are more pardonable than the methods we think up to hide them.’ If you have several reasons why you can’t be disciplined, realise they’re just a bunch of excuses—all of which need to be challenged if you want to succeed in what God has called you to do.
SoulFood: Num 1–2, Mt 9:27–38, Ps 100, Prov 3:7–8
The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright ©